‘Three Weeks in Hospital’: Anxiety As Vatican Gives Fresh Update on Pope Francis’ Health
- Pope Francis has been hospitalized for three weeks due to double pneumonia and he is currently receiving respiratory therapy but showing limited signs of improvement
- The Vatican revealed that the 88-year-old pontiff requires high-flow supplemental oxygen during the day and noninvasive mechanical ventilation at night
- Prayer continues to pour in at the Rome hospital amid concerns over Pope's overall health condition following his recorded audio message to religious faithful
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Legit.ng journalist Esther Odili has over two years of experience covering political parties and movements.
ROME - Pope Francis has reportedly hit the three-week mark in his hospitalisation for double pneumonia after giving the world a tangible indication of just how frail and sick he is, on Friday, March 7.
This was after doctors reported that his condition was stable and he is receiving therapy but not necessarily improving.
Source: Getty Images
Vatican confirms Pope Francis undergoing therapy
As reported by Associated Press (AP) the 88-year-old Francis spent 20 minutes in the Gemelli hospital chapel, praying and doing some work in between rest and respiratory and physical therapy, the Vatican said.
He was also said to be using high flows of supplemental oxygen to help him breathe during the day and a noninvasive mechanical ventilation mask at night.
Doctors not involved in his care said after three weeks of acute care in the hospital for double pneumonia, they would have hoped to have seen improvement and warned that he was increasingly at risk of secondary infections the longer he remains hospitalized.
Additionally, Pope Francis has had episodes of acute respiratory failure earlier this week and underwent bronchoscopies to suction mucus from his lungs.
“He’s had respiratory failure and they were not able to liberate him from the hospital in the first three weeks. And therefore I think you’d say this does look concerning, perhaps more concerning than it did right at the beginning,” said Dr. Andrew Chadwick, a respiratory and intensive care specialist at Oxford University Hospitals in England.
Pope thanks doctors
Source: Getty Images
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Vatican released latest update on the state of state of Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio).
The Catholic Church said Pope Francis suffered two episodes of acute respiratory insufficiency on Monday, March 2, 2025.
According to the statement, the latest setback is caused by a "significant accumulation of endobronchial mucus and consequent bronchospasm".
Pope Francis (Jorge Mario Bergoglio) also sent a thank you message to medical doctors and healthcare workers taking good care of him.
The Head of the Catholic Church said he has experienced the thoughtfulness of service and the tenderness of care.
According to the Vatican, the condition of the ailing Poe Francis, who is being treated for pneumonia has improved.
Nigerian cleric speaks on Pope's health
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that a Catholic priest said he had read online where some people were making disparaging comments about the illness of Pope Francis.
The priest said such bad comments should not provoke Catholics to anger since there was no need for them to be angry.
In a Facebook post, Reverend Father John Chinenye Oluoma said if a Pope dies in the Catholic church, the organisation is not made weak but stronger.
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Source: Legit.ng
