Pope Francis to be discharged from hospital, with prescription for two months of rest

By Joshua McElwee

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) -Pope Francis, who has been battling pneumonia for more than five weeks, will be discharged from hospital on Sunday but will need a further two months of rest at the Vatican, the head of his medical team said on Saturday.

Francis, 88, 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 Francis will return to the Vatican on Sunday, his doctors said it would take "a lot of time" for his aging body to fully heal.

They said they 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.

Francis, who was fighting double pneumonia, suffered four acute attacks of what the Vatican called "respiratory crises" during his time in hospital.

On Sunday, Alfieri said that two of the crises had been critical, with the pope "in danger of his life".

The pontiff no longer has pneumonia, but is also not completely healed from a "complex" infection involving several microorganisms, said the doctor.

Alfieri emphasized that while Francis had used non-invasive ventilation through a mask over his mouth and nose to help breathe, the pope had never been intubated during his stay in hospital.

One senior cardinal had said on Friday that the pope would need to "relearn to speak" after battling a respiratory infection for so long.

"It will take time before his voice returns to what it was before," said Alfieri.

The doctor said the pope, who had gained some weight in recent years after using a wheelchair for knee and back pain, has now lost some weight.

"We haven't weighed him, but he has lost weight, surely," said Alfieri. "But, let's say, he had some 'in reserve,' so it doesn't worry us," he added.

POPE TO MAKE PUBLIC APPEARANCE SUNDAY

Dr. Luigi Carbone, vice director of the Vatican's healthcare service, said the pope would have a nurse caring for him when he returns to his Vatican residence.

The Vatican said earlier on Saturday that Francis would make his first public appearance in more than five weeks on Sunday, to offer a blessing from the window of his hospital room before being discharged.

The pope has been seen by the public only once during his hospital stay, in a photo the Vatican released last week, showing the pontiff at prayer in a hospital chapel.

Francis wants to come to the hospital window around noon on Sunday to give a greeting and blessing, the Vatican said in its brief statement earlier on Saturday.

A period of two months rest for Francis could lead to significant changes to the Vatican's calendar of upcoming events.

The pope had been set to meet with Britain's King Charles on April 8, and to lead the Vatican's annual celebrations for Easter on April 20.

A spokesperson said on Saturday that the Vatican would decide about those appointments at a later date.

(Reporting by Joshua McElwee; Additonal reporting by Giulio Piovaccari; Editing by Mark Heinrich, Timothy Heritage, Alison Williams and Alistair Bell)