An Italian hospital in Damascus, which was founded in 1913 and is run by the Salesian Sisters, Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, is currently being supported by the “Open Hospitals” project. According to a recent Crux article, The Syrian “Open Hospitals” project was launched by the AVSI Foundation in 2016 in partnership with the Gemelli Foundation and the pontifical charity branch, “Cor Unum,” which is overseen by the Vatican’s Dicastery for Integral Human Development. The AVSI Foundation is a nonprofit that seeks to promote development and support humanitarian aid projects throughout the world.
The “Open Hospitals” project provides medical care for those living in poverty and is currently supporting the activities of three Catholic nonprofit hospitals in Syria. The hospital, run by the Salesian Sisters, has 55 beds and employs 26 physicians and 54 nurses. According to the article, the St. Louis Hospital in Aleppo, managed by the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Apparition, and a French hospital in Damascus, managed by the Company of Daughters of St Vincent de Paul, are also supported. The three Catholic hospitals offer free medical care to the poor no matter their religious affiliation, allowing some 400 impoverished people a week to receive care.