I feel there is a NEED FOR A NATIONAL PODIATRIC SOCIETY to be formed that will attempt

to have the compassion to protect competent podiatrists who are not residency trained from discrimination

by state licensing boards and other entities. Such an organization will be able to try to convince state

licensing boards throughout this country to prevent discrimination by avoiding baseline podiatric

residency criteria which may not at all relate to current competence especially if possibly outdated podiatric residency training is accepted as meeting such baseline criteria.

                                First of all a podiatrist must not practice beyond their legal scope or their scope of competence. What indicated current competence at doing a procedure? The medical record which may include photographs and or videotapes of the surgical procedure performed. Formal podiatric residency training eventually becomes more meaningless as time goes on because it becomes outdated. The only way for podiatrists to advance their skills is to practice beyond such formal training and get non formal training by education through video tapes, books, assisting a surgeon or record  and perhaps working as a primary surgeon of record with qualified first assistants so that if you book a case in the OR and you have a problem, the first qualified assistant can assist you with the complication. If it is the first time that a podiatrist does a particular procedure as surgeon of record tell the patient this and give the patient the choice to go to another podiatrist that perhaps has more experience than you. If the patient  understands it is the first time you did a procedure and requests you do to, then only do so if you feel confident that you can do so. It is best to do so with a first qualified assistant who can handle complications if you are having a problem.

                               I DO NOT LIKE THE PHRASE THAT IT IS WRONG FOR A PODIATRIST TO PERFORM

A PROCEDURE THAT THEY LACK THE FORMAL RESIDENCY TRAINING TO DO. I FEEL A BETTER PHRASE IS IT IS WRONG FOR A PODIATRIST TO COMMIT PODIATRIC MALPRACTICE THAT IS DEPARTURE FROM A STANDARD OF CARE. A LACK OF FORMAL RESIDENCY TRAINING IN PODIATRY THAT MAY BE OUTDATED TRAINING IF TAKEN MORE THAN 10 YEARS AGO IS IN MY OWN OPINION NOT MALPRACTICE. NONFORMAL EXPERIENCE AND DISCLOSURE TO THE PATIENT AS TO YOUR PODIATRIC SURGICAL EXPERIENCE IS WHAT IS IMPORTANT.

Malpractice needs that element that a departure from standard of care occurred and such a departure

is found in the medical record. Furthermore such a departure must result and be responsible for an injury.

                               Hopefully both plaintiff and defense attorneys will begin to not emphasize a podiatrists outdated podiatric residency training if it is outdated, and will only emphasize the medical record, videotapes and photographs of the surgical procedures in OBJECTIVELY DETERMINING IFpodiatric surgical mapractice did or did not occur. Videotapes and pictures are the "gold standard" as opposed to a podiatrists formal residency training that may have been outdated. Hopefully a national organization of podiatrists will emerge that will protect competent non

residency trained podiatrists from discrimination by state licensing legislation. What NATIONAL PODIATRIC MEDICAL SOCIETY can be formed and how does one go about forming such an organization? I do not know of any national podiatric society that has spent any money trying to advocate for state licensure legislation to prevent discrimination against competent podiatrists that did not complete formal podiaric residency programs. I personally feel it is wrong for such a podiatrist to give up their practice and complete such residency training to avoid being discrimintated against.

Daniel Chaskin DPM

podiatrist1@optonline.net

disclaimer: Do not rely on the personal opinions posted above but consult with a licensed health care attorney in your state.