How Spain Became a Coronavirus Spot

Tuesday 31st of March 2020

How Spain Became a Coronavirus Spot

The number of coronavirus cases in Spain passed 85,000 on 30th March, exceeding China, and experts say that a complex series of factors explain why the country now has more infections than the place where the epidemic began.

Rafael Bengoa, a former adviser to Barack Obama and the World Health Organisation and a health minister in the Basque regional government, says that politicians are reacting late to scientific advice. “It is called denial of normalcy – refusing to believe that something is happening. It is the same now as happened in London 150 years ago.”

“We all acted late – in Spain, Italy, and China when the virus first hit.” On 6th March, a report from Spain’s Health Emergency Coordination Centre warned the government of the dangers of the virus as deaths were rising in nearby Italy. At that time, there were 280 cases and four deaths in Spain. However, Spain’s left-wing coalition government refused to ban the public gatherings.

Another factor which explains the country’s high infection rate is how Spaniards live. “In Sweden, 60 to 70 per cent of people live alone whereas in Spain only 20 to 30 per cent live on their own. Most live with extended family, which also helps the spread of the virus.”

“The Spanish health system is not designed in terms of buildings, human resources and material to deal with so many patients at a time,” said Dr Juan Garcia, an intensive care specialist at La Paz Hospital in Madrid. Nearly 15 per cent of all those infected in Spain are among the 646,000 health professionals, making treating patients even more difficult.