A cardiac surgeon in Connecticut talks about nurses. “She rises at 5:15 a.m., arrives in the Covid-19 unit by 7:15. Receives the handoff information from the night shift. She washes down, dons the yellow gown, shoe covers, hair cover, the N95 mask, gloves and the eye shield and enters the negative pressure room. Her distraught patient is coughing uncontrollably.

Nurses and doctors in Médecins Sans Frontières have long experience fighting epidemics around the world. They are now sharing advice for Canadians preparing for one. There is no room for wishful thinking, they say. One must prepare for the worst-case scenario, while doing everything we can to avoid it. We must be mentally and organizationally prepared to deal with the conditions that are rocking Italy and Spain: