• Hao-Yuan Cheng, Yu-Neng Chueh, Chiu-Mei Chen, Shu-Wan Jian, Shu-Kuan Lai, and Ding-Ping Liu.
• Taiwan Centers for Disease Control, Taipei City, Taiwan.
• J Formos Med Assoc. 2021 Jun 1; 120 (6): 1400-1404.

AbstractThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has become severe threats to economic, societal, and healthcare systems. To analyze the epidemiological characteristics of the COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan and evaluate the key interventions, we conducted a retrospective cohort study during January 17-June 30, 2020. As of June 30, the COVID-19 outbreak, including 447 laboratory-confirmed cases, was eliminated by mixed approaches: border control, enhanced surveillance, case detection with contact tracing, quarantine, and population-based interventions like face mask use. The improvement of median time from disease onset to notification (5 days [range -3 to 27] before March 1 to 1 day [range -8 to 22] after March 1) suggested the timeliness and comprehensiveness of surveillance and contact tracing. Travel restrictions with quarantine, resulting in fewer clusters, were also complementary to minimize disease spread. Under combined interventions, Taiwan successfully contained the COVID-19 spread within the country and minimized its impact on the society.Copyright © 2020 Formosan Medical Association. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

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