On Nov. 14, Pope Leo XIV visited a newly opened outpatient clinic beneath the colonnade of St. Peter’s Square, ahead of the ninth World Day of the Poor on Nov. 16.
The clinic, a collaboration between the Vatican’s Health and Hygiene Directorate and the Office of the Papal Almoner, aims to expand medical assistance for those in need. It features two consultation rooms with advanced medical equipment, including a state-of-the-art X-ray machine, enabling rapid diagnosis of conditions such as pneumonia, fractures, tumors, kidney stones, and intestinal obstructions.
“Early diagnosis allows timely treatment, improving the quality of life for those who have nothing,” the Papal Almoner’s office stated.
At the Vatican’s existing outpatient clinic, over 2,000 free medical services are offered each month thanks to 120 volunteer doctors, nurses, and technicians. With the addition of the new clinic, general and specialized consultations, dental care, blood tests, X-rays, eyeglasses, hearing aids, and removable dentures will be available free of charge, along with medications delivered directly to patients.
Cardinal Konrad Krajewski, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, emphasized that these clinics restore dignity to the poor, “in whom we see not a homeless person or a poor person, but the face of Jesus.”
Credit: EWTN
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