National Cheng Kung University in southern Taiwan’s Tainan City joined hands with the Ministries of Science and Technology, Education, and Health and Welfare to hold the 2020 NCKU International Virtual Forum on COVID-19 April 21, providing a platform for members of the global academic community to share best practices for combating coronavirus.
In the opening remarks, NCKU President Su Huey-jen emphasized the importance of mobilizing resources from all levels of society to strengthen epidemic prevention strategies at this critical time.
The forum was divided into three panel sessions spanning topics such as effective university response measures, coordinated regional efforts to control outbreaks and the development of diagnostic tools, treatments and vaccinations. Among the speakers and panel contributors were experts from partnered universities, institutions and medical centers based in Canada, Czech Republic, India, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, Vietnam, the U.K. and the U.S.
Special appearances were made by Dr. C. Jason Wang, who published an article March 3 in U.S.-based Journal of the American Medical Association on Taiwan’s timely, efficient and transparent coronavirus-fighting measures, and Shieh Dar-bin, deputy minister of health and welfare. Shieh detailed technologies the country deployed in response to COVID-19, including mechanisms for distributing medical resources; R&D of rapid test kits, medications and vaccines; and models simulating the potential progression of disease spread.
The forum was livestreamed on YouTube from 9:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. local time, with nearly 90 viewers tuning in at the program’s peak. (TYT-E)
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