Article updated with report from morning of February 20.
“The Holy Father's clinical condition is stationary. The blood tests, evaluated by the medical staff, show a slight improvement, particularly in the inflammatory indices," the Vatican reported on Pope Francis the evening of February 19. Then on the morning of February 20, his seventh day in hospital, the Vatican reported, "The night was peaceful, the Pope got up and had breakfast in his armchair."
Wednesday evening's statement added that today, the Pope "went about his work with his closest collaborators. Before lunch he received the Eucharist. In the afternoon, he received a visit from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, with whom he spent 20 minutes in private."
The 88-year-old pontiff has been hospitalized since February 14 at the Gemelli Polyclinic in Rome.
On this sixth day of his hospitalization, Pope Francis remains stable. Yesterday, tests showed that the head of the Catholic Church is suffering from double pneumonia, though it was detected early.
The tone of this evening's communiqué is more positive than the previous ones.
According to a Vatican source, some of the episcopal appointments that have taken place in recent days are in fact the result of work the Pope has done in the hospital.
Giorgia Meloni jokes with the Pope
In another positive sign, the Pope received a visit in the afternoon from Giorgia Meloni, the Italian Prime Minister, who brought him what she called all of Italy's wishes for a speedy recovery.
She reported that he was “alert and receptive.” She stayed for about 20 minutes and said she had “joked” with him, "as always."
“He has not lost his proverbial sense of humor,” she said. She was the first person outside the Pope's inner circle to meet the pontiff since his hospitalization.
Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, on the other hand, did not come to the Pope's bedside, despite some rumors that he would be meeting with the Pope after his return today from Burkina Faso.
According to our information, the Pope's heart is not causing any particular concern. “The heart is doing very well,” a Vatican source said this morning. The Pope is not on permanent respiratory assistance. He can also get up and sit in a chair, “a recommended position to relieve the lungs,” says another source.
Tomorrow morning, the Vatican is expected to make another statement on the health of Pope Francis.
Follow updates here.
