Duane Hicks
“Be good to them and they’ll be good to you.”
That’s Greg Alton’s philosophy when it comes to taking care of feet.
And so it was only natural that Alton, who also is an RPN at La Verendrye Hospital here, got the necessary certification and started Alton’s Health & Footcare Services.
When not working at the hospital, which is a job he loves, Alton goes to customers’ homes to deliver foot care.
Certified in advanced foot care, diabetic foot care, and the reduction of nails, corns, and calluses, Alton said there’s definitely a demand for foot care locally—and this prompted him to branch out from full-time nursing.
“Back in January, I figured out there was a need in town for someone to come and do foot care, and diabetic foot care especially,” he recalled.
“So I talked to the hospital here to see if they thought there was a need, and there is.
“And I talked to a couple doctors, and they said, ‘Go for it,’” he added.
While the clinic here does offer foot care, it’s for diabetics only—and there’s a long waiting list to get in.
So, Alton took three or four trips to Toronto to be trained by Ruth Ruttan & Assoc., a trusted leader in cutting-edge nursing foot care instruction.
Once he had the certification, Alton returned and began the process of starting his business, getting his business licence and insurance.
Since late May, he has built up a small base of clients, ranging from a 13-year-old to a 99-year-old. The clinic even refers patients to Alton.
“I more or less do it as a service, just to help,” he explained.
“It’s a field that’s becoming more and more popular.”
Services have ranged from taking care of in-grown toenails and hangnails, treating athlete’s foot and different fungi, to helping people who can’t cut their own toenails because of an injury or other health condition.
“If they have diabetes, they should have a person coming in and doing foot care for them,” Alton stressed.
“They don’t recommend family members who aren’t trained.
“With diabetics, the chance of losing a limb is higher,” he noted. “If they [family members] nick them, they might not know.
“If it becomes infected, they could lose a limb,” he warned.
Alton goes to clients in the comfort of their own home.
Alton initially considered having clients come to his home or having a storefront operation. But the former would mean retrofitting his home to be accessible while the latter would mean higher overhead—and he’d have to increase his rates.
“What I found, working with people’s feet, it’s a personal thing,” he reasoned, adding his instructor in Toronto goes right to people’s home, where they are more comfortable.
Additionally, going to their homes is a lot more convenient for some clients, who may have health or mobility issues preventing them from getting out of the house, especially in winter.
Alton said he plans on providing service to the entire Rainy River District, and, in fact, already has been getting calls from as far away as Dryden and Vermilion Bay.
He noted he is available days, evenings, and weekends.
He schedules appointments around his shifts at the hospital, noting he has some clients who work and he doesn’t expect them to take time off just to have an appointment with him.
Alton said most insurance companies cover foot care. The customer pays him and then is reimbursed by their insurance (OHIP no longer covers foot care).
While Alton is focused on foot care right now, he may expand into more areas of health care, such as diabetes education, down the road.
He can be reached at 274-3105 or via e-mail at altonshealth@bell.net
