Search Results for all things Podiatry, Chiropody Related at Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic, Chester. A Specialist Podiatrist Working to Best Practice Standards

We are pleased to announce that as part of #NationalFootWeek ( March 9th to March 15th 2020) we will be introducing an additional diagnostic test to all patients as part of an Initial Podiatry Assessment. The test is a medical grade Electrocardiogram otherwise known as an ECG or an EKG and has been developed by AliveCor. AliveCor are a world leading manufacturer of technologically advanced medical devices. A possible outcome from the ECG is the discovery of a heart condition called Atrial Fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation ( AF) is the most common cause of an irregular heartbeat. People with AF are 5 TIMES more likely to suffer a stroke. However *Early identification of AF and the introduction of suitable medication reduces the risk of stroke by up to two-thirds ( SOURCE: NHS ENGLAND). Despite the serious impact of AF, many people are unaware that they have the condition. If following your test AF is identified your Podiatrist is able to email a copy of the ECG directly to you. So that you can discuss with your GP if suitable medication is required to manage your condition. So how is the test carried out? There are two small metal pads of roughly one square inch. The patient places the index and middle finger of the left hand on the left pad and the index and middle finger of the right hand on the right pad. The heart signal is then analysed for 30 seconds and the results are then uploaded to the ipad and displayed on the screen as an Electrocardiogram otherwise known as an ECG or EKG. The results can then be emailed to you. If the test produces an abnormal result and a diagnosis of possible AF is detected you can take these results to your GP for further investigation. The device has a built in algorithm for detecting atrial fibrillation. The results can assist in early identification of atrial fibrillation. The link below will take you to a BBC Spotlight video of just over 2 minutes in length, which summarises the benefits and potential of incorporating the test into a podiatry treatment or initial assessment. https://vimeo.com/394407713/9a875e2770 Anyone who is unfamiliar with the field of Podiatry may be surprised to know that as medically trained professionals we are able to identify many conditions that may be affecting your overall health via tests carried out within a podiatry clinic. The results of such tests ,when analysed can allow for a patient to be referred on to a GP with vital information that may allow the patient to progress for further investigations. It is recognised that Podiatrists play an important role in being "first identifiers" of underlying medical conditions. The feet are an excellent early warning system for other elements of the body . The interconnected elements help podiatrists in diagnosing scores of foot and lower limb related conditions. Conditions such as corns and callus are very common and easy to treat and maintain. Other foot complaints can be slightly more complex to identify and treat. A podiatrist can diagnose many foot health problems and develop a treatment plan to manage the condition. Below the surface the complexities of the foot structure are quite remarkable . The foot consists of 26 bones, 33 joints and over 126 muscles and ligaments. Numerous arteries and nerves start/end within the foot. Every element of the foot is vital and all of them interconnected to other parts of the body.

This week we are delighted to announce that Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic is celebrating its 2nd Anniversary. In this short period we have established ourselves within the community and hopefully built trust with our growing number of patients as a friendly and knowledgeable private chiropodist serving Chester and beyond. This morning we received news that leading website 3 Best Rated had assessed our business against a rigorous checklist of 50 criteria and had determined that on this criteria we were a Top 3 Podiatry practice serving the greater Chester area. For the many patients who have taken time out to construct a review of the service, the clinic or myself we thank you and in the coming months we will be introducing some innovative and exciting podiatry chiropody treatments as it is our aim to not only provide thorough and detailed traditional chiropody but to stay in touch with technological or medical innovation as a dedicated podiatrist chiropodist. If you are not one of the 4 million visitors a month to 3 best rated and would like to find out more follow the link below: https://threebestrated.co.uk/podiatrist-clinics-in-chester More about our approval: Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic 7 Manor Road Westminster Park, Chester, UK CH4 7QW Congratulations! You are now listed as one of the Top 3 Podiatrist clinics in Chester. We would like to Thank You for providing consistent high-quality service in your area of business. Our review team either approved or updated your business listing using our rigorous 50-Point Inspection which includes everything from checking reputation, history, complaints, ratings, satisfaction, nearness, trust, cost, and general excellence. The most important field on our website is the Unique description of the businesses, which has written to appeal to potential customers. Here is the blurb " Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic offers gold standard podiatry treatment with extensive knowledge and experience working to N.I.C.E. and Public Health England guidelines. With many years of clinical experience working within the N.H.S. Sarah, the lead pod..." For a full description check the link here https://threebestrated.co.uk/podiatrist-clinics-in-chester Three Best Rated® was created with a simple goal to find you the top 3 local businesses, professionals, restaurants, health care providers, etc., in your city. We display only businesses that are verified by our team since customers deserve only the best. That's not all... Businesses do not pay us to list them ever. You do not pay us for the listing any time. We believe that local businesses provide better and personal services locally. Local businesses know your city better since they live there too. Our policy is free to list because if you can pay to list, then is it really the best business?

In my previous post I went into a lot of detail about the huge permutations involved in shoe sizing and how when you take into account basics such as length and width there can be hundreds of differences in determining what is your actual shoe size. Today I learnt from a patient that Chester has lost yet another of its valued retailers-Hotter. Whilst not technically an independent store its loss will have a huge impact on a very loyal customer base who had become accustomed to Hotter quality across many styles of foot wear.The shoes have often been recommended for use where there are concerns over frailty. I mention Hotter as by coincidence , today I received in the post a small quantity of catalogues from DB -WIDER FIT SHOES www.widerfitshoes.co.uk Some of you will be familiar with their products and range of shoes as I know you ask for the new catalogues when they are available. For others I include the following valued information. A British shoe company based in the "Shoe Capital Of The World" Northampton. They still manufacture many of their shoes in Northampton and proudly display the Made In England Logo alongside such styles . DB were the 2017 to 2019 winners of The Footwear Industry Awards in the category of Comfort Wellness Footwear Brand of the Year. They actively promote the Healthy Footwear Guide in their literature. Apart from offering shoes constructed of the highest quality materials they also include many more advanced and considerate features such as seam free panels ( great for reducing friction and cutting of the foot), extra length strap extensions and shock absorbent soles. In the centre of the catalogue there is a helpful pullout section, on the one side there is an easy to order form that gives the choice of internet or traditional methods of ordering. On the other side there is a sizing chart that allows an accurate measurement of both the length and width of the foot to be taken. ( see the image below) Whilst still on the subject of accurate foot measurements:- If you ask most people from 10 years of age to 90 years of age they will be able to tell you their shoe size. Thats impressive, but are they actually correct? I reached the age of 21 and settled in to my shoe size for a number of years at a size 5. By the age of 30 and roll on 3 children, I discovered that my shoe size had increased one whole size to 6! Changes in the body over the years can have a further impact on your shoe size. Water retention , injury or movement in joints can be factors in the spread of your foot . In short at the age of 21 you may have been a size 6 and were capable of choosing most of the off the shelf shoes that were available . As we grow older small changes in our body such as weightgain, injury and onset of aging diseases can dramatically alter our shoe size. An in-depth study of shoe sizing in the USA found that nearly 9 out of 10 people studied had shoe sizes significantly different to what they had believed was there actual shoe size. When you visit Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic you can be sure that our mission is to give you the best possible treatment. With us your feet really are in safe hands!

A patient had read my previous post on exceptional quality podiatry instruments and we had a conversation regarding in-clinic hygiene systems. This lead me to realise that it was a great opportunity to put together a blog post relating to the procedures start to finish in ensuring that Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic maintains top rated, highest standard podiatry practice in clinic. So below stage by stage and related to the images above is the full process! Note On P.P.E Best practice requires that throughout the clinic sterilization process P.P.E .is worn by the clinician undertaking the sterilization of podiatry equipment. The process commences before the clinic opens and finishes after the clinic has closed. Stage 1 Boil 3.5 litres of tap water and add it to the specialist distiller. Over the next 3 hours the distiller will maintain a boiling temperature of 100 deg C . This process converts through distillation, tap water into approximately 3- 3.3 litres of distilled water. Around 200ml of water is lost to vapour and what remains in the distiller is a residue of super fine particles/ scaling /minerals.This residue is removed from the distiller so as to allow the distiller to be clean for its next operation. The distilled water is then utilised in 2 ways. Stage 2(a) Approximately 2 litres of distilled water is added to the clinic autoclave. Later in the day this will be utilised. Stage 2(b) Approximately 3.5 litres of distilled water is added to the podiatry clinic ultra-sonic cleanser. The ultrasonic cleanser is then set to achieve a target temperature of 75 degC. This target takes around 4 hours. Stage 3 Immediately after each patient has been seen the podiatry chiropody instruments are placed into a dedicated vessel containing cold sterile distilled water. The instruments are scrubbed to remove any debris and prepared ready to be added to the ultrasonic cleaner. Each new treatment / patient requires a new set of sterilized instruments to be used in clinic. At Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic we have a supply equal to 2 days of patient requirements. When a clinic sterilization system is set up as a daily process we can ensure that our stocks of sterilized instruments are always at hand. Stage 4 We set the ultrasonic cleaner to maintain a temperature of 75 deg C. The instruments are added to the tank with a small solution of cleaning agent and the programme is set for 25 minutes of sonic cleaning. ( My least favourite part as the machine creates a high frequency shrill!!!!!) Stage 5 Once cleaned in the ultrasonic cleaner the podiatry chiropody equipment is ready for the autoclave. The instruments are removed from the tank of the ultrasonic cleaner and laid out across the dedicated autoclave shelves. The guidelines require that the instruments must be placed on to the shelves without touching another instrument. (This ensures that the steam can reach all surfaces of the instrument). When required toenail nippers are then lubricated with a medical lubricating spray. The autoclave is the beating heart of the modern podiatry chiropody clinic. At Deva Podiatry we use an Eschmann Little Sister. Our autoclave is calibrated and serviced every 12 months by a specialised autoclave engineering company. It is fitted with a data-logger. A data-logger records and logs a set of values for each occasion that the autoclave runs through a cycle. The basic figures are that the autoclave should reach an internal temperature of 135 deg C for a continued period of 3 minutes and 15 seconds. If the autoclave cannot achieve this it fails its cycle, the error is logged and the autoclave must be serviced. The fail safe for this level of sterilization record keeping is that to be sterile and fit for purpose the autoclave has to pass its cycle and data log. The cycle contains a drying cycle that removes most of the surface residual steam deposits. Any remaining deposits are removed with lint free disposable clinic sheets. At this point I can explain why distilled sterilized water is used. The natural mineral deposits contained within tap water-even when boiled can effect the internal surface areas of the autoclave, water distiller and ultrasonic cleaner.If tap water was used for this process the steaming action under pressure would deposit residue onto the podiatry tools. The residue not only creates an effect of an instrument being "dirty" but it can also promote growth of pathogens over time. Once the cycle is completed the instruments are finally ready to be bagged into sterile pouches. We date stamp each pouch. Best Practice Guidelines ensure that instruments can be placed in sterile pouches for up to 1 year. Our system of strict rotation ensures that podiatry instruments are sterilized and ready to be used in clinic for 1 to 14 days. Some instruments are not used within a routine appointment. For instance specialist nail surgery instruments may only be used once a week and specialist ingrown toenail removal instruments may be used once or twice daily. The added benefit of a dating system ensures that such instruments are brought back into sterilization more frequently by utilising our 2 week expiry to renew sterilization policy. We have dedicated drawers and storage systems for our instruments. The routine podiatry instruments are placed into one side of a drawer to comply with our rotation. The nail surgery instruments and ingrown toenail removal instruments have their own dedicated drawer storage system. Not yet mentioned in the Deva Podiatry clinic sterilization and rotation system are the tools related to Fungal Toenail Treatment via The Lacuna Method. Fungal Nail Infection has the ability to spread and infect other toes. When it is identified as part of a treatment plan that fungal infection is present there is a need to proceed with extra caution. For example the primary purpose of the Lacuna Method is to eradicate fungal infection from infected areas of toes. Once a specialised tool has come into contact with such an area it is potentially contaminated with fungus and must be placed aside. You can see and hopefully understand that the sterilization system within a clinic is thorough in its attention to detail. The procedures and guidelines are set by NICE and the College Of Podiatry to ensure that best practice clinical standards are adopted. We are also required to keep additional records relating to our in clinic sterilization system to identify that it is fit for purpose. Where we use single use instruments they are always disposed of in an appropriate manner, for example we use single use , highest standard, Sheffield Made Swann Morton Scalpel blades which are disposed of in a sharps bin- after each patient treatment.The reusable stainless steel handles are only ever used in an individual appointment. Each patient is treated with a freshly sterilized blade handle. At the end of the appointment it is placed into the clinic sterilization system. It has been common practice in "pop up" nail bars to use files and instruments repeatedly through the day on numerous clients. For many the realisation that this is poor hygiene and sterilisation has never been a consideration. In this year of huge changes our attitudes towards hygiene, sanitisation and sterilization have changed forever. Its reassuring to know that Deva Podiatry Foot Health Clinic has adopted best practice guidelines in clinic procedures and protocols that will allow you to feel that your feet are always in safe hands.!