As one of the examples of countries which have managed to keep the coronavirus death rate lower than its European neighbors, the world seems to be looking at Greece for answers. The Guardian entered the Sotiria hospital in Athens, one of the country’s coronavirus clinics, and spoke to doctors about the struggles of their work and what they believe Greece is doing right.

In a video from their visit, released on Wednesday, Dr Yota Lourida, infectious diseases specialist, describes how the hospital’s pathology unit was transformed into a Covid-19 clinic within a matter of hours, on March 11. The big question back then, she explains, was how the country’s healthcare system, so weakened after a decade of financial crisis, was ever going to be able to cope with a pandemic. Greece had far fewer intensive care beds than the average in Europe, and not nearly enough workers to handle a rapid influx of patients.

Shortly after the first coronavirus case was confirmed in Greece, the government imposed travel restrictions, shuttered schools, restaurants, shops and churches, and finally announced lockdown on March 21. This slowed the spread of the virus, giving hospitals time to prepare, and seems to have led to far fewer people being infected overall.

“I believe this is what saved us. The healthcare system was never pressured to its breaking point,” says head of the ICU, Dr Antonia Koutsoukou, who also describes the heavy emotional burden of watching patients die without their families in the room.

While Greece may have acted fast because of the fear that its hospitals didn’t have the resources of other places, other countries might have overestimated their capability to deal with the virus – at least that’s what one might deduct from looking at death rates. “We certainly can’t cope if we become like Italy. But I don’t know healthcare systems that can handle that. Which are the ones that can? We see what’s happening everywhere,” Lourida says, and concludes:

“I think it’s important to be prepared for the worst-case scenario within the hospitals, but the real game is being determined outside of the hospitals.”