Peter Wehrwein

Compared with many other countries, including the United States, Taiwan has largely avoided the high morbidity and mortality associated with the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak seen in other regions of the world. 

, community pharmacists were credited with helping to mitigate the spread of infections throughout the country. 

“Often serving as the first point of contact between individuals and the health care system, community pharmacists offered education and consultation on proper hygiene strategies, disseminated accurate information to counter myths and misinformation, and provided emotional support to alleviate public concerns arising from the COVID-19 crisis,” write Huang-Tz Ou, Ph.D., of National Cheng Kung University, and Yea-Huei Kao Yang, B.S. ,at the university’s School of Pharmacy.

In response to demand for personal protective equipment, community pharmacies, which are strategically located and have National Health Insurance-integrated information systems, also distributed and rationed surgical masks directly to the public to curb panic buying. 

Articles

In an opinion piece published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, community pharmacists were credited with helping to mitigate the spread of coronavirus throughout Taiwan.