Health care workers are experiencing a crushing psychological burden in the COVID-19 pandemic. By Rodrigo Pérez Ortega Science’s COVID-19 reporting is supported by the Pulitzer Center.When intensive care unit (ICU) nurse Núria Burló Arévalo first heard about the coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China, she never thought it would reach her small city of Tarragona, Spain, some 100 kilometers west of Barcelona.
But 1 month ago, the virus hit her city hard. Within 1 week, her hospital went from having one case of COVID-19 to 14 seriously ill patients, including young people without any underlying conditions.
Since March, 63 members of the hospital staff have been infected with coronavirus.Long hours, high risk of infection, and crushing