Foot Clinic in Hessle: What Happens at Your Appointment

If you are looking for a foot clinic in Hessle, here is the short version. East Yorkshire Foot Health is run by Deon Bowman, a qualified Foot Health Practitioner holding a Level 4 Diploma in Foot Health from The College of Foot Health and a member of the MCFH. Appointments are £32, they last long enough to do the job properly, and you can either come to the clinic or have Deon come to you at home for an extra £5.

Most people who book have put it off for a while. Nails have got too thick to cut, a corn has started to bite when you walk, or the skin on your heels has cracked and is catching on the bedsheets. None of that is unusual, and none of it needs an apology.

What a foot health appointment actually involves

An appointment is a practical, hands-on treatment rather than a quick look and a leaflet. It usually runs like this.

• A short chat first. Deon will ask about your general health, any medication, whether you have diabetes or circulation problems, and what is bothering you most.
• A look at both feet. Skin, nails, pressure points, the shape of your toes and how your shoes are wearing all tell a story.
• The treatment itself. Nails cut back and filed smooth, hard skin reduced, corns enucleated, thickened nails brought down in bulk, rough or cracked heels smoothed.
• Advice you can actually use. Which cream to use and where to put it, what your footwear is doing to your toes, and roughly how often you might want to come back.

Everything is done with sterilised instruments and a clean set-up for every patient. If you have never had professional foot care before, it is worth knowing that most of it is completely painless. People are often surprised at how much lighter their feet feel walking out.

The problems most people come in with

Nails that have got hard to manage

Thickened, curved or discoloured nails are extremely common as you get older, and they are not always fungal. Old injuries, footwear pressure and simple age all thicken a nail plate. Whatever the cause, reducing thickened and fungal nails makes them easier to cut, less likely to press into the toe and a good deal more comfortable in a shoe. There is more detail in our guide to thickened and fungal toenails.

If bending down or gripping the clippers has become the real problem, routine foot care on a regular cycle is usually all that is needed. Nails cut, filed, tidy, done.

Corns and hard skin

A corn is a small, dense plug of hard skin that forms where a spot of skin is under repeated pressure, often the ball of the foot, the tip of a toe or the side of the little toe. It hurts because it presses inwards. Callus is the broader, more spread-out version of the same thing.

Chemical corn plasters from the chemist are best avoided, particularly if your skin is thin or you are diabetic, because the acid does not know where to stop. Professional corn and callus removal takes the bulk away with a scalpel, which sounds worse than it is and generally feels like nothing at all. Relief is often immediate, although the corn will return if the pressure causing it stays the same.

Cracked heels

Splits at the back of the heel usually start with dry, thickened skin around the rim that has nowhere to expand when you stand on it. Reducing that hard rim and getting into a habit with a urea-based cream makes a real difference. See cracked heel treatment for what is involved.

Nails that dig in

An involuted nail curls into the flesh at the side. A true ingrowing nail has pierced the skin and can become infected. Both are painful, and both benefit from having the offending edge cleared properly rather than dug at with scissors at home. Read more about ingrowing and involuted nail care.

What you can do at home between visits

• Wash and dry your feet daily, paying attention to between the toes.
• Moisturise the soles and heels, but not between the toes.
• Cut nails straight across and file the corners smooth rather than digging down the sides.
• Check the inside of your shoes with your hand for ridges, seams or stray grit.
• Have a proper look at the soles of both feet once a week, using a mirror if you cannot reach.

When to see a GP or podiatrist instead

Foot health care is for skin and nail maintenance. Some things need a doctor. Please contact your GP promptly if you notice spreading redness, heat, swelling or discharge, a wound or ulcer that is not healing, sudden numbness or pins and needles, a foot that has changed colour or feels cold, or any injury you cannot explain. If you have diabetes, treat any break in the skin as urgent rather than something to watch. Our page on diabetic foot care explains the extra checks that are built into an appointment, and there is further reading on looking after your feet when you have diabetes. For structural problems such as persistent heel pain, biomechanical assessment or nail surgery, your GP can point you towards a podiatrist.

Clinic or home visit

The clinic is based in Hessle, which suits people coming from Anlaby, Brough and the western side of Hull. If getting out is difficult, home visits cover the same treatments in your own front room for an extra £5. You can see the full list of treatments offered or read more about foot care in Hessle.

To book, or if you are not sure whether what you have is something that can be treated here, get in touch by phone on 07450 239894 or by email. A quick description of the problem is usually enough to point you in the right direction.

Common questions