More than 15,000 workers infected as hospitals struggle with a lack of test kits and protective gear. Chronic shortages are forcing emergency teams to ration equipment and come up with their own makeshift solutions

Overburdened hospitals and a shortage of protective measures and tests are taking a toll on Spanish medical professionals who are contracting Covid-19 – the illness caused by the new coronavirus – at an alarming rate.
To date, more than 15,000 health professionals in Spain – about 14 per cent of the national total – have been infected. In contrast, Italy reported that health workers accounted for about 10 per cent of its infections.
“I have tried to be careful, but when you work in a hospital, no one can guarantee that one of your colleagues doesn’t have the virus in the asymptomatic phase,” said ambulance crew member Xevi Mateu, who tested positive for the virus a week ago.
Mateu, who lives and works in Catalonia, said he thought he might have got infected during a meal break at the hospital or while on duty in the cramped space of an emergency vehicle.