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Learning from the past: Taiwan's responses to COVID-19 versus SARS.
- Source :
-
International Journal of Infectious Diseases . Sep2021, Vol. 110, p469-478. 10p. - Publication Year :
- 2021
-
Abstract
- • Taiwan avoided lockdowns while most citizens adopted preventive behaviors. • Public health responses to 2020 COVID-19 are more effective than those to 2003 SARS. • Facemask-wearing, hand hygiene, and immunity bundled can serve as population-blockade. • Preventive behaviors and vaccination must exceed viral transmission threshold. To evaluate the prevalence of infection prevention behaviors in Taiwan—wearing facemasks and alcohol-based hand hygiene (AHH)—and compare their practice rates during SARS and COVID-19. We surveyed 2328 Taiwanese from July 29 to August 6, 2020, assessing demographics, information sources, and preventive behaviors during the 2003 SARS outbreaks, 2009 pandemic influenza H1N1, COVID-19, and with post-survey intentions. Characteristics associated with the practice of preventive behaviors in 2020 were identified through logistic regression. Preventive behaviors were conscientiously practiced by 70.2% of participants. Compared with 2003 SARS/2009 H1N1, the percentages of facemask use (66.6% vs 99.2% [indoors], P < 0.001) and on-person AHH (44.2% vs 65.4% [hand sanitizers], P < 0.001) significantly increasedduring 2020 COVID-19. Highest adherence to preventive behaviors in 2020 was among females (adjusted odds ratio [aOR], 1.72), those receiving government COVID-19 information (aOR, 1.52), participants recruited from primary-care clinics (aOR, 1.43), and those who practiced AHH during 2003 SARS/2009 H1N1 (aOR, 1.37). Government leadership, healthcare providers risk communication, and public cooperation rapidly mitigated the spread of COVID-19 in Taiwan even before vaccination. Future global efforts must implement such population-based preventive behaviors at a level above the viral-transmission-threshold, particularly in areas with fast-spreading SARS-CoV-2 variants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *COVID-19
*H1N1 influenza
*SARS-CoV-2
*VIRAL transmission
*INFECTION prevention
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 12019712
- Volume :
- 110
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- International Journal of Infectious Diseases
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 152577094
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijid.2021.06.002