Facilities that treat Pope Francis

Outside the hospital of Gemeri in Rome, there is a large statue of Pope John Paul II, one of his most famous patients.

Made of white Carrara marble, he painted the Pope in his later years, leaning over to hold onto the cross, his forehead covered in pain in a groove.

Doctors at Jemeri Hospital helped save John Paul’s life after being shot dead in a failed assassination attempt in St. Peter’s Square in May 1981. He underwent six hours of surgery to remove a bullet from his abdomen.

It was the first time the Pope had received treatment at Rome’s largest hospital.

Among the current patients at the hospital is Pope Francis, who was found to have a respiratory infection last week. He has been diagnosed with pneumonia in both lungs.

Over his 25-year bishop’s course, John Paul was recognized about 10 times, sometimes for his long-term stay. He was treated for a variety of illnesses, including benign intestinal tumors, hip fractures, and tracheotomy, when his Parkinson’s disease was in an advanced stage.

Gemeri, a Catholic teaching hospital, opened in the 1960s. With over 1500 beds, it is one of the largest private hospitals in Europe.

Built in 1934 by Pope Pius XIII on land donated to theologian and doctor Agostino Gemeri, it became known as the “Pope’s Hospital.” John Paul II called it the “Vatican Three,” and St. Peter’s Square is the Vatican One, the Pope’s residence in Castel Gandolfo, Vatican 2.

In the 1980s, Gemeri established a special Pope Suite.

This small apartment on the 10th floor is an all-white suite with strict and simple furniture. In addition to the bedroom and bathroom, there is a living room, with his aides’ sofa bed and knee-jerk chapel and a large cross, where the Pope can attend or bless the public and say prayers.

The long access corridor leading to the suite is protected by the security of Italian state police, Vatican Zendermery and hospitals.

The Pope Suite is reserved for the Pope, but other patients are treated in the same bed.

There is a balcony where the Pope greets the faithful and appears to say weekly Angelus prayers.

My wife often gathers in the square outside the hospital to pray for the Pope’s health. Flowers, cards, photographs, and candles are often placed at the foot of the statue of John Paul II.

According to an official announcement, Pope Benedict XVI was not admitted to the hospital during his eight years of Pope, but he visited in 2014 when his brother was treated there.

Pope Francis has been treated several times in Gemeri. In 2013 he had surgery on his colon. He was treated for infectious bronchitis in March 2023 and underwent surgery on the intestinal lining later that year.

He often thanked his medical team and other hospital workers. At the end of one stay, he baptized the newborn baby and shared a pizza dinner with doctors, nurses, assistants and Vatican security personnel.