Ceuta nurses warn health system is collapsing under migrant surge and staff shortages

Nurses operating in Ceuta’s hospitals and clinics say they are confronting a daily load of over 200 patients while coping with chronic staffing deficits, leading to extended shifts and excessive overtime. The migrant influx has created crowded reception centres and makeshift beach settlements, sparking more than 200 gastroenteritis cases, 20 scabies incidents, 21 impetigo infections and four tuberculosis diagnoses, with likely additional cases unrecorded.

A scabies outbreak among deployed soldiers, confirmed as unrelated to the humanitarian response, has also been treated. Health experts stress that overcrowding, limited food and unsafe water, not migrant presence, fuel the spread of contagious diseases. Nurses, represented by Rosa Fuentes, have urged the national government to declare a state of emergency, while Florentino Pérez Raya of the General Council of Nursing demanded a single command structure and adequate resources. The Health Minister acknowledged strain but rejected claims of system collapse, emphasizing the need to avoid xenophobic narratives.