MEXICO CITY — The senior nurse went on national television to make a plea on behalf of her fellow health care workers: Please stop assaulting us.

Nurses working under her auspices had been viciously attacked around Mexico at least 21 times, accused of spreading the coronavirus. Many were no longer wearing their uniforms as they traveled to or from work for fear of being hurt, said the official, Fabiana Zepeda Arias, chief of nursing programs for Mexico’s Social Security Institute.

“We can save your lives,” she said, addressing the assailants. “Please help us take care of you, and for that we need you to take care of us.”

In many cities, doctors, nurses and other health care workers have been celebrated with choruses of applause and cheers from windows and rooftops for providing the front-line defense against the pandemic.