In the past few weeks since the outbreak of the new coronavirus, the dedication of Taiwan’s epidemic prevention personnel has been obvious to all. In particular, the dedicated frontline medical staff have tightened their nerves and enthusiastically discussed the professional information added every day in various groups. Discuss and exchange information, worrying about which step does not follow the rules and will lead to a breach.
But just as the school year was about to start, after the Tsai administration suddenly announced that primary and secondary schools would postpone the start of school, there was a cry of lamentation on the Internet. In addition to parents who suddenly didn’t know how to arrange their children, and the policy statement that masks were not required in class was still in their ears, classes were suspended. People will have doubts about whether it can really effectively prevent the epidemic.
A few days ago, due to the mask chaos and even the serious shortage of masks for children, the Tsai Administration just came out and called for it. Since there is currently no community infection on the island, healthy people and ordinary students do not need to wear masks, and they do not need to wear masks in school. Wearing a mask should only be recommended when entering and exiting medical institutions, for those with respiratory symptoms, and for those with chronic diseases when going out. Moreover, according to the current paper, the number of infections and symptoms in children do not seem to be as severe as that of adults. It seems that the Tsai administration's announcement means that even if you don't wear a mask to school, parents don't need to worry too much, so parents are ready for their children to go to school.
But at this moment, the Tsai authorities suddenly announced the postponement of the start of school, which seems to mean that children going to school may still cause the spread of the epidemic and it is necessary to suspend classes. Does this mean that the Tsai authorities are inconsistent in their judgment, or that the changes in the epidemic have caused There has been a change in the policy direction, which is not known based on the current information; and more parents are concerned about whether the risk of infection can be effectively reduced if their children do not go to school and are transferred to daycare classes with more dense space. This is even more worrying. People are puzzled.
Furthermore, the impact of the suspension of classes is not just a postponement of the start of school and summer vacation. In addition to the above-mentioned need for parents to find alternatives for child placement, private schools or kindergartens do not have consistent requirements, which will also cause trouble to parents. If teachers in private kindergartens and day care classes need to take care leave, problems may arise. And more complicated. Just like the controversies caused by typhoon leave in the past, this epidemic has already had a negative impact on the global economy. Even if employers are required to allow employees to take unpaid epidemic care leave in conjunction with the postponement of the start of school, manpower shortages will still affect companies after the year. The resumption of normal operations has made business operations even worse, further affecting the overall economy.
Taiwanese people have a high level of understanding of epidemic prevention concepts. Therefore, except for the inappropriate behavior of a few people who rush to buy masks and hoard goods, and who hide their medical history to avoid notification, most people will work hard to cooperate with the Tsai administration's appropriate policies. However, in addition to involving the medical profession and emergencies, the Tsai administration's policy formulation should still further consider the difficulty and overall impact on people's lives. In addition to continuing to support the Tsai administration's current epidemic prevention measures, we also hope that the Tsai administration will consider it more carefully before announcing the measures.
(The author Zhang Binxuan is an adjunct assistant professor at Taipei Medical University Institute of Medical and Biotechnology Law. Excerpted from Taiwan China Times Electronic News)
