They carry us every step of the way in our lives, yet we rarely stop to appreciate them and when it comes to care, the truth is they often come last.
They’re our feet – those complicated structures made up of 26 bones, 30 joints, more than 100 muscles along with ligaments, tendons and nerve receptors and that’s just the interior. On the outside, there’s skin, cuticles and toenails and for some of us, conditions like bunions, calluses, corns, fungal and bacterial infections, especially worrying for persons with diabetes.
Now, an award-winning podiatrist, author and medical director is betting that the growing interest in good health and well-being is leading to an awareness of the importance of ongoing foot care.
In September, with a stream of awards from three countries and a successful Bahamas Foot and Ankle practice in western New Providence, Dr. Kenneth Kemp opened a second location in Nassau, the Bahamas Foot and Ankle Medi-Pedi Spa.
Located on Rosetta Street in Palmdale, it’s The Bahamas’ first fully-certified medi-pedi spa and its founder said while the word pedicure may sound frivolous, caring for your feet is anything but. It’s all about finding a safe way, he says, to care for the part of the body that grants mobility, provides balance, impacts posture and can lead to a healthy or a very bad back.
“I started our Palmdale office because I was constantly being inundated with calls from patients enquiring where they could go to get a pedicure performed safely,” he said. “At my (Bahamas Foot and Ankle) location at Caves Village, we do X-rays, remove ingrown toenails and treat other conditions but we do not do any cosmetic work so when asked for recommendations, I would refer patients to reputable salons or spas.”
He might have gone on doing that if it had not been for a diabetic patient who got nicked during a pedicure and wound up with a life-threatening bacterial infection.
He also saw patients who came in with fungal infections. Rather than issue danger warnings, he decided to research, invest and open a new practice, a medi-pedi spa where clients would have a fully-certified practitioner under the supervision of a medical professional. The biggest surprise so far – the number of men booking appointments.
The medical pedicure, or medi-pedi for short, differs from a standard pedicure from start to finish, though prices are similar and in some cases, even less expensive, particularly in comparison to hotel spas. There is no water, no soaking, every step involves hospital grade sterilization techniques, all cleaning is done with a toxin-free, tea tree alcohol-based substance. There are no sharp-pointed scissors so there is no chance of an accidental slip or nick. All filing and buffing are done with a small, hand-held electric device, the attachment disposed of after every use.
Treatments range from a 30-minute nail polish change to a full 90-minute, 8-step procedure that includes a choice of sugar scrub—coconut, watermelon or brown sugar. But one of the most important differences, according to certified technician Melissa Sweeting, who trained in Canada for the position even though she had nine years of pedicure experience, is how the polish is handled.
“Once the client chooses the colour, we pour out the amount we will need on a disposable palette and we use a fine, single-use brush so the brush is never dipped back into the bottle and re-used on another client,” she said. “The chance for any contamination is eliminated.”
For a patient with diabetes or neuropathy, a non-medical pedicure can be risky – a single cut can lead to nerve damage, causing worsening pain, infection or, in extreme cases, leading to amputation.
Dr. Kemp, who graduated with a degree in podiatry from Temple University in Philadelphia and did his surgical residency at Mount Sinai in New York, has been honoured with some 20 local and international awards. Among them – the (American) National Podiatric Medical Association Award for Excellence in Research, Temple University’s Jay Robert Rappaport Humanitarian Award and three Mount Sinai awards of excellence in podiatry, department of orthopedics.
Locally, he has been honoured by the Health Professions Council and the Princess Margaret Foundation where he serves as Deputy Chairman. In addition to Pennsylvania and New York, he practiced at hospitals in Tornoto and Ottawa, Canada.
“The purpose of a medical pedicure,” he explains, “is not just to treat medical issues, but to prevent them. In 15 years of practice, I have seen and treated everything from open fractures to diabetic wounds requiring amputation, infected ingrown toenails, athletic injuries, chronic heel and arch pain, hypertrophic fungal nails and so much more. Having worked at a Level 1 trauma center in New York and in my role as chief resident for foot and ankle surgery at Mount Sinai in New York, I saw pain and suffering, but I also learned to respect the role of the anatomical part we literally look down on, our feet, the foundation of good health and I want others to understand the power they have in their hands to enjoy their best life with a little care for the complicated and critical, oft-neglected foot.”
Certified medical pedicure specialist Melissa Sweeting uses hospital grade sterilization techniques including toxin-free tea tree ingredients, sugar scrubs and a specially formulated polish poured onto an artist’s palette and applied with a disposable brush to avoid contamination.
