Pope Francis has been battling double pneumonia for more than five weeks/FILE
Pope Francis will be discharged from Rome's Gemelli hospital today, Sunday, March 23, and will need at least two months of rest at the Vatican, doctors treating him have said.
The 88-year-old was admitted to the hospital on February 14 with a severe respiratory infection that resulted in double pneumonia.
During the past five weeks, he presented "two very critical episodes" where his "life was in danger", Dr Sergio Alfieri, one of the doctors treating the Pope, said.
Pope Francis was never intubated and always remained alert and oriented, Dr Alfieri said. The Pope is not completely healed but no longer has pneumonia and is now in a stable condition, according to his doctors.
The Pope will offer a blessing from his window at the Gemelli hospital on Sunday—the first time he will appear in public since he was admitted to the hospital—before returning to his residence at the Vatican.
On Friday, Cardinal Victor Fernandez had said "high-flow oxygen dries everything out" and as a result the Pope "needs to relearn how to speak," Reuters had reported.
The Vatican had said on Friday that the Pope had seen some improvements in his breathing and mobility.
The Pope has only been seen by the public once since he was admitted to hospital, in a photograph released by the Vatican last week, which showed him praying in a hospital chapel.
His voice was breathless as he thanked the Catholic faithful for their prayers.
He has suffered a number of health issues throughout his life, including having part of one of his lungs removed at age 21, making him more prone to infections.
