The short answer to that question is no. In the first wave, we were governed by media appearances on what was happening in northern Italy and New York City. Thankfully, we had a few weeks' time to prepare for this potential onslaught of the novel coronavirus.
We felt very much left to our own devices, I think, in terms of inadequate protective equipment; mixed messaging, which led to confusion amongst clinical staff; an insufficient number of negative-pressure rooms, which was mandated after the SARS pandemic and I guess we didn't learn; and our concern for ventilator and ICU capacity. Our association actually had to fill in the clinical gaps left by the educational void.
Thank God, I guess, emergency physicians, emergency nurses and paramedics on a good day are a very innovative bunch. I think they responded in an exceptional manner to the challenges that lay ahead.