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I have just had a patient with a VP who has had "a practitioner" treat her VP for 6 sessions, there was no improvement at all, in fact the VP got worse. The patient cancelled the next treatment session. Oh, the fee per session was £20.

Aren't practitioners taught about reviewing treatments?

This lady was very annoyed with her last person.

I cited the success rates of the treatments incl. cryo, freezing etc,

 

Just because you have a podiatric credential/degree does not necessarily also mean that you are smart, ethical and care about the well-being of your patients. I gave up trying to understand why other podiatrists do the things they do a long, long time ago. At least the patient had better sense than her podiatrist!

 

Hi Simon

I go through ALL the treatment options with Pt up to and including 'Needling' the verrucae and explain that NONE of them are 100% effective and a good deal have low chances of success. Many chose the 'lessor' options as they do not want to pay the increased price for needling - which I have had some great successes with!

I do try to give realistic outcomes and, should nothing have affected the VP in say 2 sessions, I suggest other options OR (of course) the option to do nothing - as they will (eventually) spontaneously disappear. I also give them 'homework' to treat the VP at home so that they feel involved AND they dont have to visit me so often. I do find though that many will not accept the option of 'doing nothing' as they dislike having a virus on their foot! Also, some of the VPs are on areas of heavy pressure and are painful to walk on and/or are in corns already in situ, so do need treatment of some sort.

Simon, what treatment did you offer the patient above?

Regards

Linda Russell

 

debridement when required or needling.

 

Although I do agree with you, I'm also aware that some patients do not listen at all to the advice they receive from their professional. We can only advise and guide and if the patients then continue with treatment you've suggested won't work they sometimes then blame the professional who told them it wouldn't work in the first instance!

I recently had a lady come to me berating her previous podiatrist, who it turned out, had given her absolutly the same advice I was giving her but she had chosen to ignore it and then got cross when it didn't work, she did admit to this when we finally got to the bottom of what had gone on, 'well I suppose I didn't really listen' was the admission!!

 

100% agree. It is possibly worth speaking to the original podiatrist to find out more about the original treatment? Time has taught me that I am not so clever that I can cure everyone where others have failed. Some patients do not want to hear the right advice (eg. Shoes that are 2 sizes too small) and will leave your practice to find one of your colleagues who will tell them what they want to hear - but you can bet that they are not telling the next guy the full story. That's life I'm afraid. I would look at this as a potential networking opportunity with your colleague that may improve your treatment of this patient.
Good luck.

 

Bob,

with regards to patients bad mouthing chiropodists, GPs................I am one of the biggest fans of the statement, "there are 2 sides to every story, and until you have heard the account/version of everyone, you can't form an opinion."

 

Straightforward is always the best policy. We tell patients that, "There are lots of ways to treat warts, and many are still being used. What does that tell us? Nothing works all the time."

Big fan of Canthacur for solitary lesions - but certain to let patients know that "we won't be friends tomorrow..." As long as they know the pain is coming, there's little resistance to the treatment offered.