Dr. Whit Fisher saw the pandemic at its worst. A practicing Rhode Island emergency physician, Fisher went to New York City in the spring to help in a hospital crushed by COVID. As a second surge hits Rhode Island, The Providence Journal spoke to Fisher to get his perspective about what it was like in the epicenter of the epicenter, and to compare it to what he is facing right now when he works at Rhode Island Hospital and Newport Hospital. Rhode Island is in a tough spot as fall turns to winter. It’s worse than it was during our spring peak, much worse than it was during our summer lull, and is really the most challenging thing Fisher has experienced in his career here. For a time the state had more new cases per capita than any state in America, or any country in the world.