In brief
After over five weeks in the hospital due to health complications, Pope Francis has shown significant improvement, though he may face challenges in recovering his voice due to high-flow oxygen therapy.
Pope Francis will be discharged from Rome's Gemelli Hospital on Sunday, as confirmed by his medical team on Saturday. The 88-year-old pontiff has been recuperating from double pneumonia for over five weeks and is expected to rest for at least two months at the Vatican post-discharge. Throughout his hospitalization, he was publicly visible only once, in a photograph released by the Vatican showing him praying in a hospital chapel. As of Friday, the Vatican reported a positive trend in the Pope's recovery, although one official remarked that he might need to "relearn to speak" after prolonged reliance on high-flow oxygen therapy. Cardinal Victor Fernandez, head of the Vatican's doctrinal office, indicated that while the Pope's overall health is stable, the oxygen therapy has dried his vocal cords, necessitating speech rehabilitation. Currently, Pope Francis is no longer reliant on mechanical ventilation at night, instead, he receives oxygen through a small nasal tube. During the daytime, he is utilizing less high-flow oxygen. Earlier this month, an audio message featuring the pontiff speaking in Spanish was played in St Peter's Square, where he expressed gratitude to the Catholic faithful for their prayers, his voice noticeably affected. Despite speculation about whether Pope Francis might resign akin to his predecessor Benedict XVI, Cardinal Fernandez quelled these rumors, emphasizing that the pontiff is not contemplating such a decision. The possibility of the Pope being discharged before Easter, which falls on April 20, remains uncertain, as Cardinal Fernandez stated he could not predict this outcome. Pope Francis has led the Roman Catholic Church for nearly 12 years and has faced various health challenges, including surgery that involved the removal of part of one lung at the age of 21, which has contributed to his susceptibility to infections.
