Pope Francis’ surgeon has revealed how the late Pontiff was laying with his eyes open and no breathing problems, on the morning of his death, but he knew “there was nothing more to be done”.
Chief surgeon Sergio Alfieri, who coordinated the Holy Father’s doctors at the Gemelli hospital, went to see him early on Easter Monday and found him calm, but not responding to any stimuli. He knew that the leader of the Catholic church was now in a coma. He added: “At that moment I understood that there was nothing more to be done.”
He told the Vatican’s nursing coordinator Massimiliano Strappetti that the pontiff’s time was likely coming to an end. Speaking to Italian news outlet Corriere Della Sera, Mr Alfieri said: “Strappetti knew that the Pope wanted to die at home, when we were at the Gemelli he always said so.
“We risked letting him die during transport, I explained that hospitalisation would have been useless. He passed away shortly after. I remained there with Massimiliano, Andrea, the other nurses and the secretaries; then they all arrived and Cardinal Parolin asked us to pray and we recited the rosary with him. I felt privileged and now I can say that I was.”
He added that he was called to see the Holy Father and although nurses had battled to save him, he knew Francis did not want to be resuscitated. “At 5am, the Holy Father woke up to drink a glass of water. He rolled onto his side and the nurse noticed that something was wrong.
“He was struggling to react. The Vatican doctor on duty for resuscitation was called. They called me around 5.30am and I was on the scene within fifteen minutes. I found him with oxygen and an infusion.”
The Vatican delivered news of Pope Francis’ passing at around 7.30am on Easter Monday, mere hours after delivering a poignant Easter Sunday address.
In a statement, Cardinal Kevin Farrell – Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church – announced Pope Francis’ death with the words: “Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis.
“At 7:35 this morning (local time), the Bishop of Rome, Francis, returned to the house of the Father. His entire life was dedicated to the service of the Lord and His Church.
“He taught us to live the values of the Gospel with fidelity, courage and universal love, especially in favour of the poorest and most marginalised.”
The pope’s final public words, “Urbi et Orbi” (“to the city and the world“), were released on April 20, preceding the announcement of his death, at the age of 88.
During his appearance at the Vatican, Francis managed to utter only one line of his speech, “Dear brothers and sisters, Happy Easter!” The remaining message was published as part of the official Easter Sunday message.
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