When dozens of Spanish nurses and doctors gathered to celebrate the holiday season earlier this month, they probably didn’t intend to spread anything more than Christmas cheer. But 68 of the 173 intensive care nurses and doctors attending a Dec. 1 Christmas party came away positive for the coronavirus, according to Spanish authorities. The University Regional Hospital in Malaga nurses and doctors are now isolating, health officials said Monday. All who contracted COVID-19 had had antigen tests or booster vaccinations and are showing only mild symptoms. A spokesperson suggested the source of the viral spread might alternatively have been a large holiday meal that had been hosted for the hospital’s staff. Andalusian authorities have recommended other public and private hospital staff steer clear of Christmas parties for the foreseeable future, as Spain identified its seventh case of the virus’ Omicron variant on Monday.
