Podiatry

Our podiatry service works within a multidisciplinary team to provide prevention, assessment, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of diseases and complications of the foot, ankle and lower extremity. Read more about podiatry (Healthy WA).

Podiatrists at our hospital provide the following:

• assessment, diagnosis and management of ‘high risk’ foot and lower limb conditions, including foot ulceration and Charcot Arthropathy
• wound care - including sharp debridement and dressing advice
• neurovascular foot assessment
• provision/application of pressure offloading devices such as CAM Walkers and Total Contact Casting
• falls prevention – read more about preventing falls (Healthy WA)
• footwear assessment, advice and prescription
• treatment of mechanical foot pain and structural deformities of the foot and ankle
• prescription, manufacture and supply of custom and off-the-shelf foot orthoses
• management of ingrown toenails including surgical intervention under local anaesthesia
• referral for medical imaging and pathology tests as required – for example, X-ray (Healthy WA) and ultrasound (Healthy WA)
• prescription of scheduled medicines (only podiatrists with endorsement). 

These include:

• inpatients who are likely to have improved outcomes or fast-tracked pathways as a direct result of podiatry services
• outpatients who require podiatry services that are not available in the community or non-tertiary site in their local catchment area

Podiatrists at FSH are integral members of the multidisciplinary high risk foot inpatient and outpatient teams, working with vascular surgeons, infectious diseases physicians, endocrinologists and allied health professionals in the management of complex foot ulceration, infection and Charcot Arthropathy.

Podiatry is part of our Allied Health Service.