Church-run hospital helps build bridges to Syrian Muslims

Published: 2004-11-01

ALEPPO, Syria (CNS) -- The church-run St. Louis Hospital in Aleppo has a reputation for being the best in the city -- not only for medical care, but also for the personal attention and respect shown to patients. The institution, managed and staffed by seven Sisters of St. Joseph of the Apparition, has been building bridges to the Muslim community for more than 80 years. Its 65 beds are almost always full, and its patients include government officials, Palestinian refugees and the poorest of the poor. A recent Sunday in October found the small staff of sisters working overtime, as usual. There were sick people to comfort, meals to serve, tests to run and operations to prepare for. "Our day begins at 7 a.m. and ends at 9 p.m., every day of the year. We don't have Sunday off, or even Christmas or Easter," said Sister Arcangela Orsetti, an Italian who has worked at the hospital for 33 years.

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