I have spent the past week working in a large community hospital here in the US, in a state with a soaring number of coronavirus cases.

I previously had a few days off while this whole situation was escalating, and heard from colleagues that our hospital was taking huge measures to prepare for the onslaught. New protocols were being put in place, there was a scramble for PPE, and the hospital had dedicated an entire medical floor exclusively for coronavirus patients.

Two new walls were rapidly constructed to make the whole unit negative pressure (in other words, seal it off and theoretically lower the potential contagion). That floor is rather tucked away in a corner of the hospital, away from other floors. It is used to having general medical patients — but not necessarily specialising in high-acuity cases.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started work. Would everyone be on edge? Would there be a sense of doom? Would all my colleagues be projecting a sense of alarm?