The words podiatry and chiropody are usually in essence interchangeable and mean the same thing. Podiatry is the occupation that are responsible for diagnosing, management and also prevention of the foot as well as related problems. The extent and just what podiatrists are able to do in their day to day work are different in different nations around the world. Historically the discipline had been named chiropody and chiropodists dealt with both the feet and hands since chiro- indicates hands and pod- suggests foot. After a period of time they just treated the feet and were registered generally in most nations by regulatory authorities to handle the feet only. Ultimately the name was changed to podiatry because the profession matured and evolved. The USA was the very first to change the title 50 plus or so years back. Nations like New Zealand and Australia switched the term 20 or so yrs ago. The U.k. changed recently. Additional countries are in distinct levels of continuing growth of the discipline along with what that discipline is normally called in those countries. The terms chiropodist and chiropody are almost never heard in the US, In australia or New Zealand, but the terms continue to be in frequent usage in the UK.
As the podiatry profession evolved in several countries and the name began to switch, there was ego pushed remarks in which podiatry has been better than chiropody when in reality at the government regulatory level there was no distinction. Podiatry as a discipline ongoing to evolve and expand and adopt more complex diagnostic and treatment procedures. Despite statements to the contrary podiatry isn't something much better than chiropody, it is just part of the natural improvement and change from the breadth of practice that any profession experiences.
That extent of practice is rather diverse in different countries. In the United States, the podiatry degree is the post-graduate degree followed by a 3 year residency, so podiatrists in the US. have total medical and also surgical scope of practice to manage pretty much all problems of the foot and ankle. In the United Kingdom and Australia, the podiatry course is an undergraduate education to get registered and work as a podiatrist, nonetheless, podiatrists there could then sign-up in postgrad surgical courses to grow their breadth of practice into surgery. In a few European countries, the podiatry training course is only a two year qualification along with their scope of practice has limitations just to the management of superficial skin as well as toenail problems. Access to prescription drugs also is different from country to country and often echos the character and breadth of exactly what the profession are able to do within that nation. Generally in most nations podiatrists make use of the similar techniques to deal with most foot problems such as the usage of superficial skin and also nail procedures, foot orthotics for musculoskeletal problems and also physical exercise treatments whenever indicated. Exactly what different nations around the world do with their breadth of practice is merely different. Those with a far more restrictive extent of practice carry out what they do really well but they are looked down upon in certain ego influenced commentary that they are some kind of lessor practitioner. That is unfortunate. Every single profession in each and every country grows and develops and changes after a while and the discipline of podiatry is not any different to others.