VP Chen shares Taiwan’s experience combating coronavirus with Johns Hopkins University

2020/04/28

Vice President Chen Chien-jen delivered a speech titled “Taiwan Model: Response to COVID-19” via webcast at the invitation of U.S.-based Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health April 24 from the Presidential Office in Taipei City.
 
 Chen, who holds a doctorate in epidemiology and human genetics from the university, was joined by Ellen MacKenzie, dean of the school of public health and host of the special broadcast, and Brent Christensen, director of American Institute in Taiwan.
 
 Detailing the actions Taiwan has taken to control the spread of coronavirus, Chen described how the government responded to early warning signs of atypical pneumonia cases in the Chinese city of Wuhan by swiftly instituting onboard screening for passengers arriving directly from the Hubei capital followed by a travel alert for the affected area.
 
 Despite the World Health Organization’s initial claim of limited human-to-human transmission, Taiwan declared the new virus a Class 5 Infectious Disease January 15 and activated the Central Epidemic Command Center five days later, Chen said. Shortly after, President Tsai Ing-wen convened an emergency meeting of Taiwan’s National Security Council to coordinate interministerial epidemic prevention efforts and discuss relief initiatives for maintaining economic stability, the vice president added.
 
 According to Chen, Taiwan learned the importance of rapid response measures from the 2003 severe acute respiratory syndrome outbreak and the H1N1 flu pandemic in 2009. These lessons spurred the government to strengthen border controls, implement strict quarantine regulations, ensure sufficient supply of medical supplies, issue travel warnings and release social distancing guidelines, all while providing transparent information to the public, he said.
 
 Director Christensen took the opportunity to thank Taiwan for donating surgical masks to hard-hit countries, including the U.S. The assistance, along with the recent joint statement on enhancing epidemic cooperation, is evidence of the two sides’ robust and longstanding partnership in the area of public health, he said, adding that Taiwan’s willingness to share its expertise shows how it can assist the international community in protecting the health of all citizens.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)