The Voice of Podiatrists

Serving Over 9,500 Podiatrists Daily

July 06, 2007 #2,979 Editor-Barry Block, DPM, JD

A service of Podiatry Management http://www.podiatrym.com
E-mail us by hitting the reply key.
COPYRIGHT 2007- No part of PM News can be reproduced without the
express written permission of Kane Communications, Inc.

Overuse of Sandals Can Exacerbate Foot Problems: AZ Podiatrist

Those pretty summer sandals won't look so saucy on callused, swollen feet. "The main problem is lack of adequate arch support," said podiatrist John Tassone of Thunderbird Podiatry in Glendale, AZ "A lot of summer shoes are very flimsy, so if you have any predisposing things occurring in the foot, sandals can exacerbate those problems or bring on new ones." Expect results such as claw-like hammertoes, the thickened heel tissue of plantar fasciitis, stress fractures and pain in your feet, legs and back.

Dr. John Tassone

But you don't have to forswear summery shoes entirely. Tassone recommends sandals such as Birkenstocks, with built-in arch support and stable soles that help prevent injury. If not worn frequently, lightweight sandals probably won't hurt women with healthy, injury-free feet, he said. "If you want to go out for dinner," Tassone said, "you can probably go for an hour or two in fancy sandals. But if you're going to the mall, you should be in a good supportive shoe."

Source: Gannett News Service [6/29/07]

NY Podiatrist to Add RN to His CV

At an age when many people are in the midst of a disrupting mid-life crisis, podiatrist Paul Busman is forging ahead and re-inventing his life in a meaningful way.

Dr. Paul Busman

Weeks away from turning 57, Busman is making a radical career change. On June 4th, he began orientation at St. Mary’s Hospital in Troy, NY to become an operating room nurse.

“It’s not a step backwards,” says Busman. “I see it as a sideways move. Nursing is an important and vital element of healthcare. It will give me the opportunity to provide hands-on care for patients.”

Source: Bob Goepfert, The Record

Few Safeguards Protect Patients From Blood-Borne Infections

The New York Times on Tuesday examined how "troublingly little is known" about the "possibility of getting a viral infection from a healthcare worker." According to the Times, current policy does not require health care workers or surgeons to be tested for blood-borne viruses, and infected workers are not barred from offering medical services, including surgery. Federal health officials say that the risk of a health care worker passing a blood infection on to a patient is minimal, but "some critics say a double standard is in effect: While clear protocols are in place to protect healthcare workers exposed to a patient's blood, no such protections exist for patients undergoing invasive procedures," the Times reports.

According to Janine Jagger, an epidemiologist who is director of the International Healthcare Worker Safety Center at the University of Virginia Health System, "Patients don't know when they've been exposed to blood -- they're under anesthesia when this happens. If there's no report of it in the record, then nothing is done about it." Jagger added, "Patients never suspect this could happen to them. It's really swept under the carpet."

Source: Rabin, New York Times via American Health Line [7/3/07]

RE: AAOS and Podiatry (Howard Lazar, DPM)
From: Multiple Respondents

I agree with Dr. Lazar about the ABPS. Their sole function is to weed out what they consider the un-desirables. Because of various reasons many of us are not able to qualify for ABPS either forefoot or rearfoot and yet many of us practice these procedures. Many times even better than our ABPS counterparts.

I work in a trauma hospital that has various residency affiliations with numerous medical students and residents across the country. I have taught family practice, internal medicine, surgery and orthopedic residents and I am in great standing with the orthopedic department. My partner and myself are one of the few podiatric surgeons that will perform the procedures we do and with success. I have done Charcot reconstruction, limb lenghtening and various procedures that my counter parts that are ABPS won't even touch yet when it comes to them allowing us to be co-equals that is a different story.

Brandon J. Hawkins, DPM, Bakersfield, CA, bjhawkdpm@hotmail.com

Dr. Lazar beings up a very importnat issue. ABPS's actions has hurt my practice. Four years ago I attempted to renew my participation in the Unicare preferred provider network. I was refused continued participation because I was on ABPS board certified. On my behalf, Dr. Lazar sent Unicare's medical director materials (lots of materials) supporting our position that one, I was completely qualified to participate, and second, ABPS goes not speak for the whole profession. Our pleas fell on deaf ears.

So yes, I don't just worry about the AAOS's seemingly unethical and possibly illegal practices, ABPS is even worse to its own.

Robert Scott Steinberg, DPM, Schaumburg, IL, Doc@footsportsdoc.com

I can only assume that Dr. Lazar does not hold credentials from the ABPS and obviously has no conception of what the ABPS does for our profession as a whole. Instead of taking any opportunity to lash out against one of, if not the most stable body in our profession, he should step back and see that the ABPS exists in essence to elevate the educational experience of all podiatric residents which ultimately elevates the credentials of all podiatrists, especially in the face of opposition from Credentialing boards such as the AAOS . It is because of the vision and persistence of the ABPS, and its officers that we as a profession have moved in a direction that requires 3 years minimum of post graduate training.

Perhaps Dr. Lazar would prefer that we never move in any direction that may cast a shadow or spotlight (depending on your point of view) on the education of those practitioners who have come before us. There are many practicing general surgeons who have never performed a laproscopic procedure, but you don't see them calling the laproscopic surgeons elitist or exclusionary.

Our profession is ever changing, those who are well trained today, should only strive to train Podiatrists who will be better trained than they, it is only with this altruistic mind set that we as a profession will survive opposition from outside organizations who see us as a threat. I am not trying to single out Dr. Lazar, but I hope that any podiatrist who read his post, and their knee-jerk reflex was to agree with his point of view rethink their position. The ABPS does not exist to help "you or me" get on XYZ panel, or gain hospital privileges, it exists so that future generations will never have to answer questions with respect to our education.

Alec Hochstein, DPM - Great Neck, NY, Ahochstein@aol.com

RE: Using a Higher Concentration of Alcohol For Neuromas (Amy Schunemeyer-Purdy, DPM)
From: Marc Katz, DPM

Actually, when I talk about higher concentration, I am not referring to other specialties using it in other parts of the body. They are using it on foot neuromas. So, the discussion is regarding the foot and ankle. Again, the key is that you will be injecting minute amounts using nerve stimulation as your guide to the exact location of the nerve. The problem occurs when someone is trying to inject 50% alcohol and flooding the area to make sure they get the nerve. Well that's just a poor way to do the neurolysis. A little goes a long way and should usually kill the nerve in 1-2 treatments.

Marc Katz, DPM, Tampa, FL, dr_mkatz@yahoo.com

Editor’s Note: This topic is now closed.

• To Post a message, send it to:    bblock@podiatrym.com
• Notes should be original and may not be submitted to other publications or listservs without our express written permission.
• Notes must be in the following form:
  RE: (Topic)
  From: (your name, DPM)
  Body of letter. Be concise. Limit to 250 words or less). Use Spellchecker
  Your name, DPM City/State
• Subscribers are reminded that they have an ethical obligation to disclose any potential conflicts of interest when commenting on any product, procedure, or service.