J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 3
I
didn't think much about the slip-resistant socks we used to throw
away after patients were done with them — until, that is, I under-
went surgery myself at our hospital. It struck me as extremely
wasteful that the socks I'd worn for only a couple hours were ticketed
for the landfill if I didn't bring them home. That's when I started my
crusade to collect and wash unwanted socks and pass them along to
the less fortunate. Since my surgery, I've been collecting left-behind
socks and figure I've washed and donated about 15,000 pairs.
Before we launched this program, about half of our patients would
leave socks behind after surgery. Now that we tell them that we give
socks to the homeless, close to 75% of our patients choose to donate
their footwear to our cause. Tony Bonacci, a deacon at my church,
delivers the socks to a local soup kitchen. The socks have been a
huge hit — people at the soup kitchen gather around Tony's car when
it pulls up, asking for several pairs.
Kathy Francis, RN, BSN
OhioHealth Dublin Methodist Hospital
Dublin, Ohio
kathy.francis@ohiohealth.com
GIVING BACK
Hand-Me-Down Hospital Socks