Bedford Health: Podiatry Services

The Bedford Green Party has become aware via social media and personal experience that patients are struggling to access vital podiatry services and are being forced to pay for private treatment or go without. Podiatry services are particularly important to diabetes patients with the following being a result of poor care:

• Damage to the foot
• Foot ulcers
• Foot infections
• Charcot’s joints
• Amputation 

In addition, there is solid evidence that good foot care prevents falls. So it is a false economy to cut podiatry, an increase in falls will increase emergency hospital admissions causing distress for elderly people and additional strain on vital services.

Over the next couple of weeks, we will gather more information to present to the clinical commissioning group to address the deficit in care.