Mexican Health Officials Denounce Harassment of Nurses Treating Coronavirus Patients

Mexican health official are exposing a trend of attacks and harassment against nurses treating patients with Coronavirus (COVID-19).

During a nightly news conference, Mexican health officials revealed there have been at least 21 attacks on nurses in recent days. In addition to the documented incidents, officials claim many others go formally unreported and are instead shared through social media.

Conferencia de Prensa: #Coronavirus #COVID19 | 20 de abril de 2020 #UnidosSaldremosAdelante https://t.co/q9G2csXNDv

— SALUD México (@SSalud_mx) April 20, 2020

As part of the news conference, health officials revealed that Mexico has a total of 8,772 confirmed cases and 712 fatalities.

The head of the nursing department for Mexico’s public health system (IMSS) Fabiana Zepeda Arias, spoke about the growing harassment. The fear is tied to the belief that off-duty nurses can infect the general public.

“We are not going to infect anyone,” Zepeda said as she described the protective measures and security protocols that nurses working with COVID-19 patients must follow. “On the contrary, we are doing our job. We can care for you and save your lives, hopefully, you can take care of us.”

During the news conference, a tearful Zepeda said that in other countries, nurses are treated with respect and praise.

“We have families and loved ones, but it is our calling to care for others … we ask for respect,” Zepeda said. “Our conviction places us in the front lines against the Coronavirus.”

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.