While working at the Hospitality House Night Shelter
for persons who were homeless in 1982 I noticed
that one of the shelter’s guests was limping. When
asked about his limping, he explained that he was
wearing tight-fitting plastic shoes that were rubbing
his feet. I encouraged him to let me take a look at his
feet. Understandably he was somewhat reluctant and
hesitant to expose his sore and dirty feet. When he
finally took off his shoes and socks, I saw that the
shoes had cut deep wounds into the flesh just below
both ankles. I then did what many nurses would have
done. I got a basin of warm water, soap, and towels
and began washing his feet and cleaning the wounds.
Afterwards I dried them, applied ointment and bandaids,
and gave him some clean, soft socks and shoes.
This seemingly simple gesture was profoundly satisfying
for both of us. It was significant and meaningful
enough that I began to integrate foot care into my
clinical practice with persons who were homeless
and elderly at local soup kitchens, night shelters,
respite facilities and a nurse practitioner-run clinic.
(A. Connor, personal communication, May 5, 1984
as cited in Connor & Howett, 2009, p. 128)