Taiwan's Travel and Border Health Measures in Response to Zika

Abstract

Zika virus has recently emerged as a worldwide public health concern. Travel and border health measures stand as one of the main strategies and frontline defenses in responding to international epidemics. As of October 31, 2016, Taiwan has reported 13 imported cases, 5 of which were detected through routine entry screening and active monitoring at international airports. This article shares Taiwan's disease surveillance activities at designated points of entry and travel and border health measures in response to Zika. The Taiwan government collaborates with its tourism industry to disseminate information about precautionary measures and encourages tour guides to report suspected individuals or events to activate early response measures. Taiwan also engages in vector control activities at points of entry, including targeting aircraft from countries where vector-borne diseases are endemic, implementing mosquito sweep measures, and collecting vector surveillance data. In future emerging and reemerging disease events, entry surveillance at designated points of entry may enable early detection of diseases of international origin and more rapid activation of public health preparedness activities and international collaboration. Taiwan will continue to maximize border and travel health measures in compliance with IHR (2005) requirements, which rely on continued risk assessment, practical implementation activities, and engagement with all stakeholders.

Intersectoral collaboration for the prevention and control of vector borne diseases to support the implementation of a global strategy: A systematic review

“…Most studies reported more than one outcome as shown in S4 and S5 Tables. Of the 25 studies involving intersectoral collaboration which measured pre-post-outcomes compared against disease indicators, such as the number of cases or incidence or prevalence of malaria (15 studies) [ 4 , 30 – 43 ], dengue (four studies) [ 44 – 47 ], schistosomiasis (two studies) [ 48 , 49 ], zika (one study) [ 50 ], Japanese encephalitis (one study) [ 51 ], and leishmaniasis (one study) [ 52 ]. Amongst the 16 studies which measured vector variables (adult density, pupae or larval indices) as outcomes eleven studies were dengue [ 44 , 46 , 47 , 53 – 60 ], followed by two studies on schistosomiasis [ 48 , 49 ], and one on malaria [ 4 ] and on Chagas diseases [ 61 ].…”

“…One study in Taiwan also proved the benefit of collaboration among health quarantine, immigration, and tourism industry (travel agents and tourist guides) to provide health education on dengue and zika for tourists and passengers. As a result, this collaboration succeeding in finding five zika cases during the airport screening [ 50 ].…”

“…Of the 50 articles, intersectoral collaboration with an intervention to mobilize community and health education was the most common. The interventions implemented through the collaboration between the sectors varied from providing human or financial resources, designing to executing an intervention, developing policy and mobilizing communities (24 studies) [ 30 , 32 , 35 , 43 – 45 , 47 – 50 , 53 – 58 , 60 – 65 , 68 , 72 ], followed by diagnosis and treatment (12 studies) [ 35 , 36 , 39 – 43 , 49 , 52 , 68 – 71 ], prevention method (IRS and LLINs distribution (11 studies) [ 31 , 35 – 37 , 39 , 41 , 43 , 66 – 68 , 73 ], surveillance, monitoring and evaluation (nine studies) [ 35 , 38 – 42 , 52 , 68 , 69 ], mass drug administration (four studies) [ 48 , 72 , 75 , 76 ], cross border collaboration (four studies) [ 35 , 40 , 43 , 52 ], two studies for research [ 40 , 51 ] and one study for advocacy and legislation […”

“…The level of collaboration also varied from local, province, national, regional and global level. The level of collaboration at local level was presented by 37 studies, province or sub-national level in four studies [ 34 , 39 , 42 , 51 ], national level in four studies [ 31 , 50 , 52 , 77 ], regional and global level in six studies [ 35 , 40 , 43 , 72 , 75 , 76 ].…”

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of imported dengue fever among inbound passengers: Infrared thermometer–based active surveillance at an international airport

“…Outbreaks have been reported throughout the Americas and several regions of the world since 2015. Taiwan quickly adopted Zika surveillance at international airports and has detected several imported Zika cases through this system [28]. When emerging/re-emerging diseases become international public health concerns, travel and border health measures play important roles in national disease prevention strategies.…”