Covid 19: 6 Countries that Handled it Better Than India

Covid 19 has been wreaking havoc in the world since the outbreak began. It has already infected 7 million people in the world out of which more than 400000 have died. India has had a rapid increase in the number of coronavirus cases with cases crossing 2.5 lakh.

India has taken strict measures to try and contain the spread of the virus but there are some countries whose actions have turned out to be more effective. As of 9th June 2020. New Zealand has reported zero active cases and have announced that the country is going back to normal.

Let us see what these countries have done to contain the virus. Here are 6 countries that have handled Covid 19 better than India

New Zealand

New Zealand took strict measures to ensure that the virus is contained in the country. They focused on eliminating the transfer of the virus by strict social distancing measures. The country closed its international borders barring anyone but citizens to enter.

On the domestic front, they followed a strict 7 week lockdown which allowed only essential services to operate. The country also had a very high testing rate. For a total of 1154 positive coronavirus patients, they have already conducted more than 2,90,000 tests. This high degree of testing played an essential role in curbing the spread of the virus.

Experts believe that New Zealand’s low population density of 15 people per sq km has greatly helped them in containing the spread of the virus but the government and people of New Zealand deserve credit. Their rapid and strict regulations have allowed them to win the fight against Covid 1

Taiwan

Taiwan is a country that had thousands of people travelling to and fro from mainland China when the outbreak began. Yet the country has had only 410 total cases so far.

Taiwan’s success is attributed to their rapid response to the outbreak. They were one of the first countries in the world to start taking measures against the coronavirus.

Taiwan was one of the worst hit countries in the Sars outbreak 17 years ago and since then the country has been preparing to respond better to outbreaks.

Their model focused on screening all incoming passengers. Taiwan’s officials started boarding incoming flights to screen passengers for symptoms. The suspected patients were screened on arrival. This significantly reduced the potential of a virus carrier to affect more people.

Taiwan linked patient medical history files to immigration records to ensure that anyone with a travel history can be monitored. Any Taiwanese citizen that is under home quarantine is delivered cooked food and other essentials along with visits from health care professionals.

There are strict fines imposed on individuals who hide their symptoms.

This rapid model allowed Taiwan to stop the virus from spreading in their country.

Credits: Pexels

Caption: Taiwan’s massive data monitoring helped them in dealing with the Coronavirus.

Alt Text: A lot of servers.

South Korea

South Korea is one of the biggest success stories in battling the coronavirus. The country was able to do it because of their preparedness. South Korea had an approach of test, trace and isolate and the country was technologically advanced enough to do that.

The second most important factor was their large stockpile of equipment required to battle viruses. When the first cluster of cases was reported in a church, the authorities quarantined everyone and started tracing and testing individuals who had come in contact with them.

South Korea also brought in innovative testing methods such as walk in testing clinics which were very effective. The country has flattened its curve with the help of their technological innovations and availability of virus tackling equipment.

Germany

Germany has the highest population in the European Union. Their death rate is lower than some of the other countries such as Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Germany has one of the best healthcare systems in the world. It has one of the highest concentrations of hospitals and Intensive care units per capita in the world.

The testing in Germany has been very well documented. This allows easy tracing of coronavirus cases. Germany has conducted more than 4.3 million tests for coronavirus so far.

One major worrying factor for India has been the travel of migrant workers due to economic hardships. When these workers were forced to venture home, they were breaking lockdown and social distancing norms which are essential to contain the virus. The migrants did not seem to have a choice but in Germany, the economic help was massive.

If you are a coronavirus patient in Germany then you do not have to pay rent or taxes. These can be paid years later once you are free from the problem. Moreover, the country is providing financial support to freelancers and artists who do not have livelihoods anymore.

To ensure that no one loses jobs, the German government is providing massive loans to small and large businesses. This economic stimulus has allowed Germans to stay at home and be financially secure, something which Indian migrant workers and others are lacking.

Credits: Pexels

Caption: The effective financial aid allowed people to stay at home in Germany.

Alt Text: A man holding a sign.

Australia

Australia has had just over 7200 cases. Australia has been successful in dealing with the coronavirus with the country flattening its curve. Australia announced travel restrictions not allowing foreigners to enter the country and imposed a strict lockdown. The country was successful because it started with rapid testing. The country has performed more than 1.7 million tests and have been successful in tracing the coronavirus cases.

Experts believe that Australia’s significantly low population density of 3.2 people per square kilometre, which rises to 172 people per sq km in some densely populated areas is still quite low when compared to countries such as India.

Strict social distancing measures paired with rapid testing have helped Australia in containing the virus.

Vietnam

Vietnam was one of the 1st countries to confirm a coronavirus case outside of China. The country has had just 332 cases and zero deaths. Vietnam is a country which relies heavily on foreign trade yet they have managed to contain the virus.

This is attributed to the strictness imposed by the country. The government of vietnam used its military to enforce a strict lockdown. The use of the military ensured that there were no lockdown violators. Moreover, the quarantined tens of thousands of people in camps to contain the virus. Vietnam’s response has faced some scrutiny but has been very effective.

Credits: Pexels

Caption: Vietnam used the military to implement a strict lockdown.

Takeaway

These countries have handled the pandemic better than India but their smaller and less dense populations have also played a part in that. In a country like India with a massive population and a high population density  of 464 people per sq km social distancing is difficult. However, to flatten the curve there are lessons to be learned from these countries.