Pope Francis has entered his fifth week of hospital treatment for double pneumonia and is continuing the work of his papacy as signs of his recovery remain positive.
Francis remains in stable condition, “confirming the progress” the 88-year-old pontiff has made in the past week, the Vatican said on Saturday.
The pope, who was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli University Hospital on February 14, is also reducing his use of mechanical ventilation at night to help with his breathing, a statement added.
Doctors this week said Francis was no longer in critical, life-threatening condition but have continued to emphasise that his condition remained complex due to his age, lack of mobility and the loss of part of a lung as a young man.
The first three weeks of his hospitalisation were marked by a roller-coaster of setbacks, including respiratory crises, mild kidney failure and a severe coughing fit.
But Francis has continued his work. He has approved a three-year implementation and evaluation process for a reform project that aims to make the Roman Catholic Church more welcoming and responsive. The Vatican office for the Synod of Bishops released a timetable through 2028 to implement the reforms and said Francis had approved the calendar last week.
This week, the pope also participated in Lenten spiritual exercises from the hospital, which Vatican officials have said implied a lighter workload. He received a cake and hundreds of messages wishing him well on the 12th anniversary of his papacy on Thursday.
The only public sign of life from the pope since his hospitalisation was a recorded audio message thanking people for their prayers for his recovery, which he made in a weak, laboured voice. It was played in St Peter’s Square for the faithful gathered for a nightly recitation of the rosary.
For the past four Sundays, the traditional blessing that the pope usually delivers from a window overlooking St Peter’s Square has been released as a text.
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