Boston doctor celebrates 40 years serving the community at Health Care for the Homeless

A Boston medical expert is marking a major milestone he has spent years helping others through Wellbeing Care for the Homeless It s a humble profession that even more humble beginnings and after all that time serving the district he says the way he views homelessness has changed as well Dr Jim O Connell has been caring for Boston s homeless society for four decades O Connell had his sights set on a prestigious oncology fellowship after graduating from Harvard and completing his residency at Mass General Brigham But the chief of medicine offered him a different path care for the city s unhoused under a one-year operation Boston s Wellness Care for the Homeless At crisis rooms back then we were getting flooded with homeless people and the thought was how do we get out and take care of them he announced O Connell declared he hastily fell in love with all the challenges that come with caring for the unhoused and he started training under nurses who provided services at the Pine Street Inn They ordered him to remove his stethoscope and start with a simple but critical task soaking feet I had to soak feet they took away all my expert s stuff and they revealed if you soak feet you ll learn patience and you ll learn how to let people get to know you and tell you what they need that foot soak became the kind of gateway into caring for someone he recalled Part of O Connell s work has been caring for patients where they are and that includes on the streets at night He would meet hundreds of people sleeping on the street and would ask if they needed food water or healthcare care He initially would encourage them to find shelter but then he met a subject who mentioned something that changed his mind When I go to Pine Street or the shelter I can t tell which voices are mine the client commented but when I m here under the bridge I know which voices are mine and I can deal with that O Connell says he now realizes that solving homelessness includes affordable housing addressing crime and better programs through development materials But for now Healthcare for the Homeless is continuing to meet people where they are You can t give something to everybody asking but you can acknowledge everybody he revealed You can say hello sorry I don t have anything for you in the present day but how are you doing Looking back O Connell commented he never expected the campaign and patients to give him so much in return Learn more https www bhchp org