Taiwo Popoola
The Vatican says Pope Francis will be discharged from hospital on Sunday.
The head of his medical team said this on Saturday, adding that he would need a further two months of rest at the Vatican.
The 88-year-old pontiff was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on February 14 with a severe respiratory infection that became the most serious health crisis of his 12-year papacy.
While the pope will return to the Vatican on Sunday, his doctors said it would take a lot of time for his aging body to fully heal.
The doctors had prescribed the pope two months of repose, and had advised him against taking any meetings with large groups, or that require special effort.
“The recommendation for a period of convalescence of at least two months is very important,” Sergio Alfieri, head of the pope’s medical team, told the press conference.
The global head of the Catholic Church, who was fighting double pneumonia, suffered four acute attacks of what the Vatican called respiratory crises during his time in hospital.
Alfieri said that two of the crises had been critical, with the pope in danger of his life.
According to the doctor, the pontiff no longer has pneumonia but is also not completely healed from a complex infection involving several microorganisms.
