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VATICAN FIREFIGHTERS HAVE installed a chimney on the roof of the Sistine Chapel as the 7 May conclave to elect a new pope grows nearer.
The chapel’s chimney is an important fixture in the conclave. After every two rounds of voting, ballots are burned in a special furnace to indicate to the outside world how its papal election is going.
If a pope has been elected, ballots are mixed with potassium chlorate, lactose and chloroform resin as they burn to produce white smoke from the chimney, telling onlookers that the new pontiff has been chosen.
However, if voting concludes with no election – which requires two-thirds of votes from eligible cardinals – the ballots are mixed with cartridges containing potassium perchlorate, anthracene (a component of coal tar) and sulphur to produce black smoke that will steam from the chapel’s chimney.
The election of Pope Francis in 2013 came after the fifth ballot and two days. His predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, was also elected after two days.
Many people will crowd outside the chapel, waiting for the white smoke to appear.
The Journal’s Diarmuid Pepper will be in Rome throughout the conclave next week – you can follow him on X here
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Always questions questions questions, but never any answers!
@Colette Kearns: It’s a hospital, the chances of a virus being there is quite high. I think that answers the question
They’re bacteria?
@Timmy:
Eh, no, hospitals being places where bacteria are likely to be found does not answer why they cut the cleaning budget.
@Timmy: TIMMY!
@Timmy: I also think it answers the question, albeit in a superficial and practically inept fashion. The idea in the hospital is to not endanger the patients (or staff) any further. That specifically includes maintaining the highest of hygiene standards, the hospital failed to do that and cutting the cleaning regime was obviously a factor in that.
@Jon Snow: Livin’ a lie, TIMMY!
Of all the things to be cut in a hospital, hygiene!!! I’m not a doctor, but is cleanliness not vitally important in a hospital of all places??
Never happened when the nuns were in charge, the hospitals were always spick and span.
Cutting costs on cleaning and putting people’s lives in danger. Like why not just reduce the boards massive wage bill instead.
@Darren Cooney: you will probably find the Board are all unpaid volunteers.
Lowest bid cleaning contractors???? Hospitals need qualified in-house cleaning staff 24.7
The answer lies in the fact that there’s an antibiotic culture in this country.
@Darren Bates: No… it doesn’t. In the case of these superbugs it’s more to do with an antibiotic problem… in India.
“Questions need to be asked”
The favourite go to line of many a politician, knowing only too well it’ll all be forgotten and buried in a few days/weeks.
Ridiculous to cut the budget. But very misleading article- cleaning or lack there of does not contribute to carbarpenem resistance, the use of that antibiotic does.
The day of drug resistant staph and enterococcus is fast approaching.
@George Beckett: to be infected by the bacterium requires the bacterium to be presence.
The probability of the presence of the bacterium is increased by reduction in cleaning.
Prevention of infection is better than cure, especially in the case of antibiotuc resistance fir the bacterium.
@George Beckett: Eh… the day is here? It’s called MRSA and CRE or VRE. Nobody is disputing how resistance evoloution happens they’re disputing that proper measures aren’t taken to try and prevent the acquisition of these bugs.
@George Beckett:
Yes but it can be controlled by correct aseptic methodology which include cleaning regimes which is lacking in this case
No accountability,no consequences.
“Penny wise, Pound foolish” the mantra of government.
“Penny wise, Pound foolish” the mantra of government.
It’s been widely reported in the past that this hospital has had issues with bullying and it’s ‘management style’, particularly in it’s Emergency Department, resulting in consultants there becoming whistleblowers. I’ve heard whispers that little has changed, the hospital management hire highly qualified staff to help enact changes. But these are consequently bullied and unable to do their job – a job which had been earmarked for another member of staff belonging to a clique within the hospital. Unwilling to admit they have a problem with bullying, the management then become a reluctant party to it.
The lunatics are running this particular asylum, and have been for quite some time, so it should be no surprise when some questionable decisions are made, but just how much latitude are they going to be given before an adult steps in and takes control is the real question. This isn’t the first time patients lives have been put in danger, or even lost in Tallaght Hospital, particularly in it’s Emergency Department, the issues aren’t being resolved and appear to be getting worse.
It would help tallaght hospital if they got half decent cleaners to clean wards/toilets/main hospital areas. Place is filthy
Why not get prisoners to clean then hospitals at 4am. Problem solved.
Get the nuns in with the Dosco brushes n Dettol
Who I mean who, decided a hospital (any hospital) only needed to be cleaned 6 out of 7 days?
Find the person and let him go….
have your say