Timely preparation, aggressive testing, tracing of carriers and luck helped limit the impact of COVID-19. Singaporean lawyer Iman Ibrahim was enjoying her snowboarding vacation in Italy, Switzerland and Austria this month when the coronavirus outbreak in Europe suddenly turned her trip into a race home. She was lucky to make it back to Singapore, an international financial hub known for its quasi-authoritarian but effective government. Three days after her return, she tested positive for the coronavirus. Singapore reported its first two deaths from the pathogen only this past weekend, despite being one of the first countries to be hit by the outbreak outside China two months ago. That has made it one of the safest places in the world for patients with the disease, which has already killed more than 13,000 people globally. Singapore’s success in dealing with the outbreak is attributed to the government’s speed in imposing border controls soon after the disease first erupted in China, meticulous tracing of known carriers, aggressive testing, a clear public communication strategy and some luck. |