Heath readily concedes the early mishaps - the worst of which was allowing passengers off the Ruby Princess - but his experience getting back to Australia and how he was treated when he got here offer a useful perspective on the way Australia has risen to an extraordinary challenge.

He's not just talking about the leadership at the top but the well thought out process at the coal face, from embarking on the repatriation flight to the treatment he received in the quarantine hotel in Melbourne. Add to that the way most Australians have done their bit by observing the social distancing rules without complaint.

As a nurse reflected to him, the country has never dealt with an emergency like COVID-19 and is making it up as it goes. And given the raw numbers - the flattened curve, the comparatively low death toll - his description of the effort as "outstanding" rings true.

One only has to look at the UK, where no amount of polite clapping for the National Health Service can mask the terrible response to the pandemic. It beggars belief that only now is Britain about to impose quarantine on the thousands of arrivals to its shores, something Australia did weeks ago.

And in the US, where more Americans have died through the pandemic than through the entire Vietnam War, the response has been woeful, the low point reached when the president mused about injecting disinfectant to kill the virus.

Here, the calm and measured daily briefings, not just from political leaders but from the experts upon whom they rely, have reassurred an anxious nation. We might not have agreed on everything but we certainly have not been storming state legislatures with armed militia dressed in Walmart tactical gear as they have in the US.

We shouldn't make the mistake of assuming we're out of the woods. Winter is coming and with it a whole new set of challenges. Easing restrictions will likely see further outbreaks. However, if we continue our cautious approach, we should weather the storm.