The United States is a modern society which depends on us being mobile. Americans spend a long time on their feet during the day. As people become more mobile, foot care becomes more and more crucial, particularly for people who would like to keep a healthy way of life.
Many people never consider the human foot, but it is a marvel of engineering and function. The foot has 26 bones and also a myriad of nerves, blood vessels, ligaments, and muscles. All function in combination to produce movement and balance. One-fourth of all the bones within the entire human body are within the 2 feet. To deal with maladies, disorders, ailments, and conditions in the foot, podiatry professionals employ sound medical education. Podiatry involves the diagnosis and treatment of disorders and injuries in the lower leg and foot regions. Podiatry also includes proactive care to ensure that the feet are well-supported and mobile for every-day and sports use. For diagnostic applications, podiatry practitioners make use of a variety of methods, including x-rays, medical tests, and computer imagery.
Podiatrists will work on their own, or they partner with other podiatrists to make a practice. Podiatrists who choose to run a private clinic are also operating a business. In order to run the business, they will need to hire assistants, keep records, buy materials, and a host of additional administrative tasks. Pertaining to podiatrists who are not prepared to operate a small business, they could select pathways such as education.
In 2002, there was approximately 13,000 podiatrists in the United States. Most were solo practitioners who were self-employed. Some, however, worked as staff for some other health practitioners. Other podiatrists worked for private hospitals and government departments. All states require a license in order to practice podiatric medicine. Each state has got unique certification specifications. Nevertheless, many states may recognize another state's license.
In order to be licensed, the future doctor should have graduated from an authorized podiatric college. In order to get into a podiatric program at an approved school, you will need to have satisfied certain prerequisites while attending undergraduate courses. For example, you will need to have successfully accomplished a minimum of 90 semester hours of undergrad study and maintained a decent grade point average. MCAT examination scores can also be emphasized.