AN Italian nurse has committed suicide after being traumatised by her experiences in trying to save lives in the front line of the battle against the coronavirus pandemic.

Daniela Trezzi worked in the intensive care unit of San Gerardo hospital in Monza in Lombardy, the Italian region most affected by the outbreak.

The National Federation of Nurses of Italy expressed its “pain and dismay” over Mz Trezzi’s death, calling her suicide “a terrible episode.”

Initial reports suggested that she had contracted coronavirus and had taken her life over fears that she had infected other people.

But the hospital director dismissed this claim and said she had taken her life because of the trauma of working on the front line.

The federation said: “What Daniela had witnessed recently had contributed heavily … it was the straw that broke the camel’s back.”

More than 5,000 Italian health workers have tested positive for coronavirus, with unions warning that more protective equipment is urgently needed.

Nearly 30 doctors have died after contracting Covid-19.

Ms Trezzi is the second nurse to have committed suicide, with another taking their life in Venice last week.

The federation warned that “in these stressful conditions, these may not be the last.”