Podiatric Medicine Spotlight

Doctors of podiatric medicine (DPM) treat the foot and ankle, and they may focus on surgery, sports medicine, and direct patient care. DPMs are surgeons, doing everything from suturing wounds on the foot all the way to reconstructive surgery on the ankle.

They work in conjunction with other specialists to diagnose conditions like diabetes or kidney disease that often present in the lower extremities. They also treat trauma, tumors, ulcers, fractures, skin and nail diseases or congenital deformities in patients of all ages. helping children and older adults and everyone in between to relieve pain and increase mobility. DPMs have full prescription rights and often prescribe medicines to treat pain, inflammation, or infection. DPMs work in hospitals, private practices, with the military and veterans, in schools, for athletes and with the elderly. Because a career in podiatric medicine has so many options and opportunities, it is one of the most common reasons cited by DPMs as to why they decided to pursue the profession, along with the fact that it is a multifaceted medical profession.

There are 11 DPM programs in the U.S. and the educational programs are four years, which includes two years of classroom instruction and laboratory work, and two years of clinical science courses and patient care experience in the college clinic, local community clinics and hospitals. DPM graduates then pursue a 36-month podiatric medicine and surgery residency that includes training in rear foot and ankle surgery. Practitioners can focus on orthopedics, pediatrics, sports medicine, geriatrics, vascular surgery, plastic surgery, infectious disease, or primary care to name a few.

The average salary for DPMs is between $180,000-250,000, depending on the location in the U.S. and the scope of the DPMs practice. For more information, go to ExploreHealthCareers and the American Association of Colleges of Podiatric Medicine