A Sunday Times colleague ended up in the casualty ward of a private Johannesburg hospital in December for a non-Covid-19 illness. As she was wheeled into the emergency room in the dark hours of an early morning, a nurse waited at the door. “Welcome to our emergency ward!” he said, before adding: “We will help you get better.” She would later recall the bizarreness of the moment but also how it made her believe she was in good hands. ..