Podiatry & the elderly

[Frostytiger87]

Hi , my dad is 87 with COPD & Osteo arthritis.He has had to pay privately over the last year for a private podiatrist to trim his toe nails as he can’t do them himself
His Dr done a referral to the NHS Community Podiatry but on two occasions he’s been refused . Apparently there is a strong criteria to have this done on the NHS . Im so irate over this as my dad is on a pension and in a lot of pain with arthritis
Im really looking for advice please
Thankyou

I don't think they do this much
does your dad get Attendance Allowance?

podiatry services won’t cut nails, there just isn’t the funding. They only deal with people who have serious issues p/diabetes etc. nail cutting has to be paid for I’m afraid.

As above- you need to have serious foot issues or diabetes, they aren’t a toenail cutting service. It must be very hard for your dad though, loosing that flexibility to do it. Could a carer do it or would you? I had to do my nans for years due to her swollen hands.

Hi EmmaEmerald no he doesn’t get attendance allowance . A private podiatrist charges anything up to £50. My dad isn’t asking for a full pedicure just a nail trim . As we get older the nails harden so there’s no way I would attempt to do them . He is at risk of falls with over grown nails.

You can google the criteria for podiatry in your local NHS. But yes, sadly it's a tiny resource and only difficult cases/long term illness etc.

Get him to apply for AA then? That is the kind of thing that it is there to pay for. Failing that you can buy very long handled nail clippers in most pharmacies

We just can't see everyone. Nhs podiatry isn't there for nail cutting. It's there for high risk wound care. I see around 14 to 16 cases of gangrene, ulceration, sepsis etc in a day and don't do any nail cutting at all.
What we tend to do in your father's case is one of our junior staff does one assessment then refers to Age UK if his feet are suitable I.e just nail cutting. Age uk has a very good nail cutting service which is inexpensive and can be done at home but generally they need a referral from us.
We only cut nails of very high risk patients who would lose a foot if they accidentally got cut or didn't have the correct treatment.

I'd suggest you apply for this
It's a bit misleading on the government page as it talks about disability but those benefits are separate?

I called the number and spoke to a very helpful lady who dispatched a large print form for mum. She explained if the claim was accepted then it would be backdated to the day I called.

Some people say "fill it in as if it's your worst day". We didn't do that. It didn't seem right as mum's conditions are highly variable so we talked about an average day.

About two months after filling it in, they called her to check some things and she told them she had improved, but still needed things like railings fitted in the house eg the bathroom. She uses a stairlift. Her mobility doesn't allow her to use public transport.

I think they also checked with her doctor and a place where she had respite care after a small stroke and a fall. The application was accepted so she now has c£68 a week. That would certainly help your dad and I would say it's worth a try.

meanwhile, if he soaks his feet in warm water, will that soften the nails for cutting?

Have a look at local charities and businesses who specialise in elderly people. My mum got hers done for years by a volunteer who had been trained to cut elderly nails and to identify any concerns. Because of something raised by the volunteer she now gers it done by local podiatrist who specialises in elderly and charges £15 for a home visit of about 15 minutes.

My dad isn’t asking for a full pedicure just a nail trim

Which isn’t something the nhs can provide either.
Nails to get tougher/harder as we age but if he soaks his feet they will soften and you would be able to cut them then. There are heavy duty trimmers available in boots.
https://www.boots.com/beauty/makeup/nails/tweezerman-barrel-spring-toenail-nipper-10088250

Most Podiatry depts now are strictly for high risk patients , - diabetes and Rheumatoid Arthrits being the main groups.

Diabetes complications can lead to amputation and ultimately in some cases death.

In a list of priorities , nail care is low.

Some areas have Age Concern volunteers who have trained to perform basic nail care to low risk patients , there's a charge but it might be worth enquiring ?

Thankyou all so much for your informative replies it makes sense now , it’s a pity that when my dad was refused the Dr didn’t explain this to me . I will get in touch with help the aged and see what they suggest

I used to give my mum a long foot bath and then trim her nails, which were thick and hard and misshapen. I just went slowly with some good toenail clippers. It's not particularly fun, but certainly doable.

A lot of areas in the UK have an age uk service available for foot care for people with a social need for nail care. The service is normally run by volunteers who have been shown how to safely cut nails.
Another suggestion would be to attend a Podiatry appointment with your dad and ask them to show you how to safely cut his nails, if you’d be happy to do that. I’ve done that for families in the past.
If he had his nails cut to a good level, and then you dry file them weekly, that will keep them short enough to be comfortable. Some people find that less of a worry than cutting them for a relative.
There are also a lot of very good foot health professionals out there who are trained at a high level and often do not charge quite as much as a Podiatrist. There’s a lot of variation with prices depending on where in the country you live.
Im a private Podiatrist and charge £35 for a routine appointment in a clinic setting. That’s about average for the area I work in.

Don't you need a chiropodist? most do home visits and are used to helping the elderly. My Mum pays £30 and they come to her at home - she cuts nails, and sorts out any dry skin etc for that.

I believe in some areas due to the demand and capacity, the service isn’t there for even skin care. My mother whose 66 and has type 1 diabetes, on insulin and has currently a painful foot and skin hardening, it’s sore. Gp did referral but then referral got declined. She has an appointment via private service via age uk, I think- she has to wait a while but will get seen.

Age UK charges about £15 for their nail cutting service. Your GP will sort it out for you.

My late father in law had diabetes so got his appointments through the NHS, but they were so short staffed he had to book some private appointments in between. We applied for Attendance Allowance, which was easy to do online, he preferred the private ones. Funny thing was that he worked as a handyman for Age UK and my mother in law volunteered with bathing.