Chiropody/Podiatry

[SueNunn]

Hello,

I was wondering if any members here practice Chiropody.
I live in the south west of England and would like to start training with a view to becoming a mobile Chiropodist.

I know to work for the NHS the training is very long so I would like to work privately.

A friend who lives a couple of hours from me cut out an advert in her local paper and the mobile foot clininc had these letters after her name.
S.A.C Dip
FHTP S.A.C.
Dip. FHPP

I am hoping someone can give me some advice with regards to training and which course is recognised and worth doing.

 

[dellaznailz]

hi and welcome to the site.:hug:

I have a close friend who is a chiropodist and we refer clients to each other.it works very well

I do know, as you said, it is a long haul. I think she did 3 years at Plymouth university.there are other much shorter courses available but not nearly as good. If you PM me your details I will ask her to get in touch for further info.

hth's :hug:

 

[SammiG]

Hi!

I looked into this myself a few months ago. There are only 13 places in the UK that do the podiatry course. It is 3 years full time I think and you have to apply the ucas way.

if you ring each university, they will send you an info pack along with entry requirements etc.

You have to have a work placement in the last year I think. I am thinking of doing it but not for a couple of years until my little ones are a bit older.
This website was helpful to me

Podiatry Careers

Sam x

 

[SueNunn]

Thank-you both for the replies.

I think the 3 year course at Plymouth would be the best choice however I do not have the qualifications necessary to even start that course.
I did a 4 year course in Homoeopathy and qualified in 1993 which also covered clinical training the last 2 years and Anatomy, Physiology and Pathology but the NHS do not recognise my LCH qualification.

I searched on the internet and there are a number using the
S.A.C Dip
FHTP S.A.C.
Dip. FHPP

letters.
The Diploma allows them to call themselves "Foot Health Practitioners".
They all advertise treating Callus, Corns, Ingrowing toe nails and Fungal infections.

My friend was pleased with her treatment, she had been using a Chiropodist for a couple of years previous to that.

This is the course I was looking at.

http://www.openstudycollege.com/courses/foot-health-course.html

 

[footwoman]

Hi Sue,
i cannot make an in-depth comment on the course you show because I do not know what the level of training is or what support you would get after completing the course.

I can make suggestions, though, based on my experiences as a chiropodist with extensive experience in practice management.

First of I would suggest you embark on some quantifiable research of the potential market, and work out the potential demand for your services. What would be your USP (unique selling point) and how does this compare to other that may be providing a comparable service? Why should people choose your sevice and how are you going to market it?

Contact the college and make sure there are no hidden cost attached to the course.
Make sure your Local Authority allows you to work from home. Even if you are not actually treating clients there, you will still be peforming many background tasks associated with your business.
Also check the latest protocols for sterilization and decontamination of instruments, including the latest Health & Safety Laws. Most important, do you have an area at your premises to house all the equipment necessary for this?

To set up, you need as a minimum (and this list is not exhaustive) :-
1.An autoclave. As you are doing purely domicilary work you will need a vacuum one that seals the instruments in bags. They start at about £3000. You will need one with a printer attached to help with instrument traceability.
You will need distilled water to operate it.
This will need a service contract after the first year, cost about £300. you will also need Pressure vessel insurance as it will not be covered by your home insurance, cost maybe £150.

2.An ultrasonic cleaner to remove debris from instruments before sterilizing. They cost £600- £800 plus the cleaning fluid to use in them. Alternatively you could scrub them yourself but you will need the space and time to do this.
2. 5 sets of instruments to start with at a cost of about £100 a set. Don't be fooled into buying cheap ones. You need best quality stainless steel as the cheap ones go rusty quickly. A good pair of nail clipper will be anything from £30-£40 .
3. A good portable nail drill with dust extractor. This is essential unless you want to be made ill by inhaling nail dust. They start at about £700
4. A stool, to sit on during treatment and you may want a portable light as well, as some homes can have poor lighting. Don't forget that any electrical equipent taken into someones home needs to have regular PAT certification. (Portable appliance test)
5.Uniforms, paddings,strappings, medicaments, patient record cards, and all the clerical equipement needed to run a small business and space to store all these.
6. A contract with a clinical waste disposal company to remove any clinical waste and you generate and space to store in in between collection. You will also need a sharps bin kept in a secure area. Cost from £150-£300 a year depending on type of contract.

In addition you will need to formulate a business plan such as the one that can be downloaded from the Alliance & Leicester website.
This will tell you how much you need to charge and how many hours you need to work etc to remain viable.
It needs to cover all your existing financial liabilities, provision for holidays and sickness and possible payment into a Pension Fund.
You will need to devise a maeketing strategy and a buget and decide whether or not you want to invest in a website.

You will need to register with the Tax Office and if you are going to prepare your own accounts then you will need to obtain advice about how to do this.

As I said the list is not exhaustive.
Remember, being a self-employed practitioner is a business not a hobby and should be approached as such.
Hope that helps.

 

[SueNunn]

Thanks for the detailed reply Footwoman.

From reading the website the majority (section A) of the training is completed at home and the 12 modules must be done within 2 years.
I would have access to a tutor by telephone or e-mail.

Section B is the clinical training of either 5 or 10 days at college campus in a modern purpose built dedicated foot health centre.

It is taught by a fully trained and state registered Chiropodist.

The level of training is similar to NVQ level 4.

"With this qualification you will be able to secure professional indemnity insurance to practice competently as a fully registered Foot Health Practitioner".

Can you tell me how I can embark on some quantifiable research of the potential market?

There are no Chiropodists or Foot health practitioners advertising in my local paper.
There is a Chiropodist shop on the high street in my town and one in the next town.

I went into one shop and asked if I may ask a couple of questions. The lady told me a 5 year course is needed to practice, I said that I thought it was a 3 year course.
She would not even look me in the eye and seemed very busy so I thanked her and left.
I am not going to be able to get much information from her.

If I was to complete the course I would place an advert in my local paper offering home visits for those that find nail cutting difficult or awkward and also treatment for Callus, Corns and Athletes foot.
I have seen some of the adverts from others that have completed the course and they offer a complimentary foot masage at the end of the treatment.
I was not sure if that made the service look a bit unprofessional so am not sure about that yet.

I do know my mother has seen a few Chiropodists over the years and she now sees a FHP and is pleased with service and enjoys the foot massage at the end.

Her last Chiropodist who was always running late did not tell my mother she had a fungal nail infection and she also did not use the electric drill because she said the dust irritated her.
The FHP does used an electric drill with a vacuum attachment.

I have contacted the college and got an auto response but no reply yet, that was about 10 days go.

As far as I could see there are no hidden fees axcept the price of the accommodation.
The course fees include "

• The published price includes one/two weeks (5 or 11 clinic days) full practical training at our dedicated Foot Health Centre on the College Campus. (Please note that your travelling, food and accommodation expenses are not included.)
• FREE Practitioner's Toolkit worth £100.00
• FREE Patient diagnosis pocket handbook worth £15.99
• Up to 20% ongoing discounts off of your products and equipment from a popular supplier
• Business start-up advice
• All the necessary paperwork, examination fees and certification required to gain the Stonebridge and NCFE awards
• Ongoing dedicated tutor support to make sure that you succeed! "

Sterilisation and decontamination is one area that I am very concerned with.
I would want to do everything correctly and not cut corners.
My mother tells me her FHP did not bring an autoclave with her, she used some liquid to clean her tools.
I do not know if FHP's have the same regulations in this area as Chiropodists do.

I do have a few empty rooms in my home.
Where can I find the latest protocols for sterilisation and contamination?

I had seen Autoclaves for around £700 but they did not have a printer attached and I assume it was not a vacuum one.

Yes I would surely inform the HMRC that I had started a business and declare all my earnings.
I know tax returns can be filled in online now.

I would want to make this a full time business.
It appears many FHP's charge £25 per treatment session.
I would like to build upto 5 patients a day, 25 a week.
If I saw them every 4 weeks I would need 100 patients/clients on my book if I saw them every 6 weeks I would need 150 on my books.

There is more information on the course on this page.

Foot Health School :: Foot health practitioner distance learning course :: Structure of the Course

 

[footwoman]

Hi Sue,
You have raised a lot of queries so I will try and deal with them one by one.

For advice to research the potential market try www.Bplans.com

You could also contact your local Federation of Small Businesses and see if you could go as a guest at one of their meeting to get some idea of what it is like out there in the real world.

If you went into a chiropodist's surgery without making an appointment to chat to the owner, it is not surprising you got a cool response. A far better approach would be to make contact by letter and ask if you could pop in some time. The owner will then be able to schedule some time to see you. People in business don't always have time to chat - they are working!

Don't criticise other practitioners if you want to get on in business. The market place is a great leveller. Those that are good succeed, it is as simple as that. You need to build networks and find access to a friendly chiropodist/podiatrist to whom you can refer conditions that are outside your scope of practice. This is the hallmark of a responsible practitioner, knowing when to refer on to someone more qualified.

I would not expect anyone to take an autoclave with them on visits - they are not designed to be portable! That why I suggested getting a vacuum one that seals all your instruments in bags ready for use.

The standards for decontamination/sterilzation to be aimed for are the same for chiropodist/podiatrists/foot health practitioners ie: best practice.
See Institute of Decontamination website.
There is no law that says how you should effect this but remember that in the event of a claim you will be judged against Best Practice.

Fees are something you need to build into your business plan. I don't know where you live but I would doubt that anyone could afford £25 for a simple footcare service every 4 weeks or even 6 weeks.
I don't know if you want to work from home or do domicilary practice but you will certainly need more than 5 patients a day to cover your outgoings and make a living.

The usual rule of thumb for building a business is that if it is growing steadily you would need one full day's work for every year of trading. So it usually take about 5 years to build a full-time business. Therefore you need to be thinking as to how you will fund yourself while you are building up your business.

Just because there seem to be a dearth of foot-related practitioners advertising in your area does not mean they are not there! That's why you need to do some networking and find out exactly what the competition is.

Hope that helps.