Pope Francis spoke to members of the Association of Italian Religious Medical Services about the painful consequences of a culture of throwing away in the health service. “The Church must respond to the needs of the excluded,” said the Pope.
(Vatican News Network) Pope Francis received members of the Italian Religious Medical Services Association (Aris) in the Vatican on the morning of April 13, inviting them not to ignore the pleas for help of the more vulnerable and marginalized. The Pope hailed the good history of these congregations that have provided services over the centuries, focusing on the poor, vulnerable and abandoned in society through the medical field. The Pope also mentioned that under the influence of the current discarding culture, the dignity of the sick is no longer valued.
The Pope stressed that the charism of the Catholic health service is at the forefront of responding to needs, remembering that we as the Church must respond first to the poor, the excluded, those who cannot be helped for reasons of an economic or cultural nature. The Pope said that some people are sick but have no access to medical treatment, and even paying registration fees has become a problem. There is also a situation where “even urgent and necessary medical treatment is placed on a long waiting list”.
In addition, the Pope also mentioned that the phenomenon of “poverty of health care” in Italy’s socially and economically difficult areas has returned. The sick, especially, do not receive the medicine they deserve, and the hardest hit are the elderly. “An elderly person has to take those medicines, and if they are not given to him for reasons of economy or for one reason or another, this is an invisible and gradual euthanasia,” said the pope.
“Christian-inspired healthcare organizations have an obligation to uphold the right to care for the most vulnerable in society, prioritizing those who suffer the most and go untreated, even if this may require the transformation of existing services to a new reality .”
The Pope concluded by calling on the Religious Medical Services Association to accompany those who are housed in their institutions “with comprehensive care”, not neglecting “the spiritual and religious assistance of patients, their families, and medical personnel”. “It’s not just a sacramental pastoral service, it’s a total human concern. No one should feel alone when sick!”
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