Surprising moments from the front lines of homeless healthcare | Jim O'Connell | TEDxBoston

Fresh out of medical school, Dr. Jim O'Connell expected a lofty reception at his first assignment providing care for homeless folks. What he didn't expect was the start of a humbling new education in providing healthcare with compassion. And it all began with washing feet.

What started as a short stint would grow into a calling and a four decade career serving the unhoused. Key success factors he discovered were continuity of care, delivering services with humility, and engaging the community being treated in the program design. The stories speak for themselves. Jim O’Connell, MD (he/him), serves as the President of Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program and is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. O’Connell received his medical degree from Harvard University in 1982 and completed residency in Internal Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. In 1985, he began full-time clinical work with homeless individuals as the founding physician of the program. He established the nation’s first medical respite program in 1985, with 25 beds nested within the Lemuel Shattuck Shelter. Working with the MGH Laboratory of Computer Science, Dr. O’Connell designed and implemented the nation’s first computerized medical record for a homeless program.

Dr. O’Connell served as the National Program Director of the Homeless Families Program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Dr. O’Connell is the editor of "The Health Care of Homeless Persons: A Manual of Communicable Diseases and Common Problems in Shelters and on the Streets". His articles have appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of the American Medical Association, Circulation, the American Journal of Public Health, the Journal of Clinical Ethics, and several other medical journals. His first book, "Stories from the Shadows: Reflections of a Street Doctor", was published in 2015 and featured on NPR’s Fresh Air with Terry Gross. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx