Pope Francis has approved a new three-year reform process for the Catholic Church, sending a strong signal he plans to continue in the post despite spending a month in hospital battling pneumonia.

Pope Francis approved a new three-year process to consider reforms for the global Catholic Church, the Vatican said on Saturday, in a sign the 88-year-old pontiff plans to continue on as pope despite his ongoing battle with double pneumonia.

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics is recovering from double pneumonia at Rome’s Gemelli hospital.

Pope Francis has initiated a three-year reform process for the Catholic Church, signaling his ongoing leadership despite health challenges. The initiative extends the Synod of Bishops and focuses on inclusion and modernizing the Church.

Pope Francis approved a new three-year process to consider reforms for the global Catholic Church, the Vatican said on Saturday, in a sign the 88-year-old pontiff plans to continue on as pope despite his ongoing battle with double pneumonia.

The pope was admitted to Rome's Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14 with a severe respiratory infection that has required evolving treatment.

Pope Francis has been hospitalized at Rome's Gemelli Hospital since Feb. 14, where medical professionals have been giving him treatment for bilateral pneumonia. Pneumonia is nothing to mess around with,

Pope Francis acknowledged being fragile and "facing a period of trial", as he thanked well-wishers Sunday for prayers in a message from hospital, where he has been slowly recovering from

Pope Francis is receiving "thousands" of letters a day from around the world as he slowly recovers from pneumonia in a Rome hospital, said Italy's postal service.