02/25/2019    David Davidson, DPM

Is podiatry a surgical specialty or is surgery a sub-specialty of podiatry?

Podiatrist or podiatric surgeon? Interesting
question. I have been a podiatrist since the
time of Methuselah. I graduating from podiatry
school prior to the establishment of podiatric
surgical residencies and certainly before
specialty fellowships were available.

I graduated with the idea that I would be a
generalist – a podiatrist taking care of all
foot/ankle needs of the patient. And yes, I was
taught there was a patient attached to the foot,
so I quickly developed the expertise to deal
with multiple patient problems which influenced
my care.

Clearly, surgery was an integral part of my
early years. Yes, I attained Board certification
(not a simple task without a residency). I also
took the lead in attaining hospital privileges
for podiatry in my area in the early 1990s.

For the past 30 years, I have been very active
in the hospital/surgical world and have looked
with pride at the incredible progress the
podiatry profession has made. In my geographical
area, podiatrists are truly “equal” to all other
specialties. General surgeons, orthopedic
surgeons, vascular surgeons, etc., all consider
podiatrists as a valued member of the healthcare
team.

Am I a podiatric surgeon? Sure. Am I a
podiatrist? Absolutely. Am I forced to choose?
I certainly hope not, but if I am forced to make
a choice it would be the latter. I am proud to
be a podiatrist – a member of the healthcare
team that spends a good deal of time in surgery
but also performing general foot care for
patients of all ages and with all types of
foot/lower extremity problems.

David Davidson, DPM, Buffalo, NY

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