On the tenth floor of the Gemelli, this is where Pope Leo is hospitalized

Pope Leo's apartment is in the "mini department" dedicated to the pontiffs, a suite already used several times by John Paul II and Pope Francis, whose windows overlook the hospital square. A white apartment, which is accessed by a white door, on the top floor of the right wing of the Gemelli Polyclinic, complete with a study and a chapel for prayers and any celebrations, with a kneeler and a large crucifix.

The layout of the apartment dates back to the early 1980s when it was organized for the hospitalizations of John Paul II, seven of them, the first when he was injured by Alì Agcà in St. Peter's Square in the attack of 13 May 1981 and the last, for a tracheotomy operation, in 2005, when Parkinson's was also in an advanced state. The long access corridor, which can be reached not only by stairs but also by a lift for use by all healthcare personnel, is under the control of the Italian State Police, the Vatican Gendarmerie and the Polyclinic Security. The Pope's room has large windows overlooking the hospital's main entrance. In 2005, Wojtyla looked out from those very windows to greet the faithful and patients and also conducted an Angelus from there during which he jokingly renamed the Gemelli the "Vatican three" after St. Peter's Square and Castel Gandolfo.

In the apartment reserved for the Pope, obviously, in addition to the Gemelli doctors, Dr. Luigi Carbone will also have access, appointed in June last year by the Pope as head of the Directorate of Health and Hygiene of the Governorate of the Vatican City State, and all those who normally follow Leo XIV, together with his nurses who, in collaboration with the specialists of the 'third Vatican', as Wojtyla said, will take care of the Provost for a week.

Meanwhile, outside the Polyclinic there are already many crews of photographers and anchormen active in reporting on the imminent hospitalization of the 71-year-old pontiff. You can also feel the discreet presence of the Vatican staff who guard some reserved access routes while in the Polyclinic there is the usual coming and going of patients who crowd one of the most important hospital centers in the Capital.