Founded in 1869 by Roman Duchess Arabella Salviati, the Bambino Gesù pediatric hospital is one of the oldest and most renowned children’s hospitals in the world. In 1924, the Salviati family donated the institution to Pius XI, making it the “Pope’s hospital,” and it is still under the direct governance of the Holy See to this day.

Speaking to the great charity of the hospital, Fabrizio Arengi Bentivoglio, President of the Patrons of Bambino Gesù, explained, “There are a number of Children’s Hospitals in the world, certainly excellent healthcare providers. There are fewer research pediatric hospitals, but still there are. There are none that provide the best possible free healthcare in Rome. At Bambino Gesù, we accept and treat every single child who has needs for free. And that’s quite a unique distinction of the Ospedale Bambino Gesù.”

Last weekend, over 3,000 pediatric hospital employees, patients, and their families met the Pope at the Vatican to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the hospital’s donation to the Holy See.

In recent decades, the hospital has become known for its high level of specialization in treating children, coming not only from Italy or neighboring European countries but from the world over. Fabrizio Arengi Bentivoglio shared some insights into the hospital’s international mission.

He said, “We think that there are opportunities to expand this beyond Italy and beyond the European children by making the facilities available for children that don’t have otherwise access to superior care in other parts of the world.” 

“There are currently,” he continued, “as we speak, a number of initiatives to train and develop doctors, nurses, and medical personnel in a number of countries around the world. And these development programs are carried out both in their own countries as well as with initiatives, stages, and internships in Rome.”

One of the many countries where the pediatric hospital is active is Cambodia. With the help of Catholic missionaries, the hospital’s mission has become a reality.

Father Gianluca Tavola is an Italian missionary and member of the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions, who, since 2007, together with fellow missionary Father William Conquer, has been in charge of a Cambodian parish extending over two provinces: the province of Sihanoukville and the province of Koh Kong, close to the Thai border.  

“The Catholic Church in Cambodia,” Father Tavola explained, “is committed to two very important sectors: education and health. So, in each community, we have small centers of learning to bring people together and convey to them the importance of studying, going to school, and education. Another very important sector is that of health, the health ministry. In Cambodia, health services cost, and so the people in the villages who don’t have real salaries and who cannot afford to go to the hospital are struggling. The Catholic Church has, for this reason, developed a program, and we have been implementing it for many years now to help the poor and sick.” 

In addition to building churches, being in charge of schools and orphanages, the Pontifical Institute of Foreign Missions also operates or supports many local hospitals, clinics, and so-called sick-shelters, both close to the large and expensive hospitals in the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh, but also in each community where poor people often come asking for help that they cannot afford.  

“In these years, we are talking about 20 years more or less of this project,” Father Tavola told EWTN, “we have had several collaborations, collaborations with local hospitals and there where we bring our patients, and with NGOs, Catholic and other humanitarian realities to help the sick. We have, for example, a collaboration with the Bambino Gesù hospital in the Vatican, in Rome, with the Pope, and with other realities in order to be as effective as possible in helping those in need.”

To give hope. This is what the Pope’s hospital strives for — not just within its own walls but reaching far beyond. Although the hospital also effortlessly works to bring sick children to Rome, the Bambino Gesù continues to strive to help the sick even from afar.

Bentivoglio highlighted the unique quality of the Pope’s hospital, saying, “One of the initiatives is really the training and the support on the ground and the development of medical personnel. Right now we have 16 countries where currently there are hospital personnel training local nurses and local doctors. This is quite unique, and this is quite important.”

Adapted by Jacob Stein

Sign up for our newsletter here: HTTPS://MAILCHI.MP/EWTN/VATICAN