Pope Francis will greet a crowd from his hospital window on Sunday, the Vatican said, marking his first public appearance since he was admitted to the hospital more than one month ago for a respiratory infection in what has become his longest hospital stay as the Catholic Church’s leader.
Pope Francis has been hospitalized for five weeks. (Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP) (Photo by ANDREAS ... More
Francis will appear at his window at Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Sunday afternoon to bless the crowd, the Vatican’s official news account confirmed on X Saturday.
The Vatican has indicated Francis’ condition is improving, though Cardinal Victor Fernandez said on Friday Francis may need to “relearn to speak” after receiving oxygen therapy, but Fernandez said the pope is otherwise doing “very well.”
The Vatican’s press office said Friday Francis “no longer uses mechanical ventilation” and is using less high-flow oxygen through a nasal tube, adding his condition continues to be stable and he is showing improvement in his motor and respiratory functions.
Doctors have not yet indicated when Francis may be discharged, the Vatican said Friday.
Francis was admitted to the hospital on Feb. 14 for a respiratory infection. The following week, the Vatican said the pope was in "critical" condition and “is not out of danger,” stating he needed high flows of oxygen to assist in breathing and had received blood transfusions. Doctors said at the time he was infected with pneumonia in both lungs, and was diagnosed with bacterial, viral and fungal infections on top of his chronic bronchitis. The Vatican said Feb. 23 Francis had experienced “mild” kidney failure and had suffered a “long asthmatic respiratory crisis” the day before. Doctors said in early March Francis had been without a fever and was off ventilation and that his condition was improving. The Vatican released the first photo of Francis since his hospitalization last week, in which he is seen praying at a hospital chapel.
Francis, at age 88, has led the Catholic Church for 12 years and has occasionally sparked concerns over his health. He has been hospitalized multiple times, including once in July 2021 for a narrowing of his large intestine, and another hospital stay two years later for bronchitis. Francis has long suffered from chronic lung issues, as he had part of his lung removed while he was young following a pulmonary infection. Francis’ health issues have sparked speculation over whether he would resign, following the unprecedented resignation of his predecessor Benedict XVI, though Cardinal Fernandez said Friday the pope would not resign.
Pope Francis advisers say he’ll recover from pneumonia and a ‘new stage’ is opening for him (NBC News)