Siloam Mission opens podiatry room to help homeless with foot care
Advertisement
Read this article for free:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
To continue reading, please subscribe:
Monthly Digital Subscription
$19 $0 for the first 4 weeks*
- Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
- Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
- Access News Break, our award-winning app
- Play interactive puzzles
*No charge for 4 weeks then billed as $19 every four weeks (new subscribers and qualified returning subscribers only). Cancel anytime.
Read unlimited articles for free today:
or
Already have an account? Log in here »
Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/11/2014 (3410 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Siloam Mission has taken an important step to help deal with an increasing foot care demand.
The downtown shelter officially opened a permanent podiatry room at its 300 Princess Street location Thursday, in the hopes of alleviating the many foot problems homeless people suffer through on a daily basis. The permanent podiatry room, a $15,000 facility put together by Dr. Tejel Patel and funded through various donations, will provide patients and volunteers with a modern and well-equipped clinical setting for foot-care services.
Since 2007, Siloam has enlisted the services of several podiatrists and foot nurses to treat the homeless every week. These treatments would take place in a temporary room in the Saul Sair Health Centre, a space that was quickly outgrowing patient demand.
“Some people are on their feet all day at times, walking long distances at times, so there are problems associated with that,” Patel said following the unveiling Thursday.
Education on the proper foot hygiene, advice on how to manage with diabetes and arthritis, and the physical treatment of minor issues — before they become major ones — is a part of the patient options at Siloam.
“The folks we serve are walking or standing constantly, without proper footwear.” Siloam executive director Floyd Perras said in a statement. “Their feet get wet and frostbitten. The skin breaks down. They aren’t able to properly look after wounds, blisters, and calluses. These things quickly snowball into major health issues.”
In 2013, 234 people came to Siloam’s health centre with foot-related problems. Not every visit is for immediate foot care or treatment, Patel said, noting that equipping a patient with the proper footwear within Winnipeg’s wide-ranging climate is also part of the challenge.
Surprisingly, there’s little difference in demand on the podiatry department from summer to winter.
“In the summer it’s hot, so there are friction and blister issues associated with the heat,” Patel starts, “while winter sees more insulation problems. No matter what season we’re in, though, this service and this new space will continue to help a lot of people.”
History
Updated on Thursday, November 27, 2014 1:46 PM CST: Adds photos