The statue of John Paul II at the Gemelli University Hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalised with pneumonia in Rome on February 28, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AFP
Pope Francis suffered an isolated coughing fit on Friday (February 28, 2025) that resulted in him inhaling vomit, requiring non-invasive mechanical ventilation, the Vatican said in relaying a setback in his two-week long battle against double pneumonia.
The 88-year-old pope remained conscious and alert at all times and cooperated with the maneuvers to help him recover. He responded well, with a good level of oxygen exchange and was continuing to wear a mask to receive supplemental oxygen, the Vatican said.
The development marked a setback in what had been two successive days of increasingly upbeat reports from doctors treating Pope Francis at Rome’s Gemelli hospital since February 14.
The episode, which occurred in the early afternoon, resulted in a “sudden worsening of the respiratory picture.” Doctors decided to keep Pope Francis’ prognosis as guarded and indicated they needed 24-48 hours to evaluate how and if the episode has impacted his overall clinical condition.
The episode, which doctors described as an “isolated crisis of bronchial spasm” was a coughing fit in which Pope Francis inhaled vomit. The longer respiratory crisis Pope Francis suffered on February 22 was a crisis in actually breathing, the Vatican said.
Doctors did not resume referring to Pope Francis in “critical condition,” which has been absent from their statements for three days now. But they have been cautious in declaring him out of danger entirely, given the complexity of his case.
The Vatican has already made alternative plans for Ash Wednesday next week, making clear Pope Francis still had a long road ahead. Cardinal Angelo De Donatis, a Vatican official and former vicar of Rome, will preside over the March 5 ceremony and procession that inaugurates the church’s solemn Lenten season leading up to Easter in April.
Earlier Friday (February 28, 2025), Pope Francis had spent the morning alternating high flows of supplemental oxygen with a mask and praying in the chapel. He had breakfast, read the day’s newspapers and was receiving respiratory physiotherapy, the Vatican said.
The Vatican also published a document signed by Pope Francis on February 26, “From the Gemelli Polyclinic,” a new tagline that showed Pope Francis was still working from the hospital.
Prayers continued to pour in In Mexico City, a few dozen people gathered Thursday (February 27, 2025) night at the cathedral to pray for Pope Francis’ recovery.
“He is like part of the family,” said Araceli Gutiérrez, who treasures the time she saw the pope during his trip to the country of nearly 100 million Catholics in 2016. “That’s why we feel so concerned for him.” María Teresa Sánchez, who was visiting from Colombia with her sister, said that she has always felt close to Pope Francis — the first Latin American pope.
“That’s like having a relative within the higher-ups, with God,” she said. “He has done so much for religion; he’s such a humble person.” Upcoming calendar in question Given his continued hospitalisation, Pope Francis’ near-term upcoming calendar of events was being changed: The Vatican cancelled a Holy Year audience scheduled for Saturday (March 1, 2025) , and it remained to be seen if Pope Francis would skip his Sunday (March 1, 2025) noon blessing for the third week in a row. With Ash Wednesday now delegated to a cardinal, the next major events come during Holy Week and Easter, which this year falls on April 20.
In past years, when Pope Francis has battled bronchitis and influenza in winter, he curbed his participation in Ash Wednesday and Holy Week events, which call for the pope to be outdoors in the cold leading services, participating in processions and presiding over prayers in the solemn period in which the faithful commemorate Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection.
Beyond that, Pope Francis has a few major events coming up that he presumably would hope to keep if well enough. On April 27, he is due to canonize Carlo Acutis, considered to be the first millennial and digital-era saint. The Vatican considers the Italian teenager, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15, an inspiration for young Catholics.
Another important appointment is the May 24 commemoration of the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicea, Christianity’s first ecumenical council. The spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, Patriarch Bartholomew I, has invited Pope Francis to join him in Iznik, Turkey, to commemorate the anniversary, which he has called an important sign of reconciliation between the Catholic and Orthodox churches. Before he got sick, Pope Francis said he hoped to go, though the Vatican hasn’t confirmed the trip.
Published – March 01, 2025 12:16 am IST
