Foot Care Nursing Business

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Hello....any recent advice/ commentary on starting a foot care business? There is an old thread, but I'm wondering if there is anything more recent from any foot care nurses...thanks so much. I am on my way next week to Rainier Med in WA for training, hopefully to complete certification and begin a business...any help or comments would be appreciated...Debbie

bbrown74 said:

my email is [email protected], I have no idea what's going on but I appreciate you hanging in there with me hahaha

Did you receive my email I sent yesterday? 

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Specializes in Occupational Health.

Hello -

I am about to attend the National Nurses in Business Association conference next week and look forward to speaking with Heather Wilson from the Foot and nail Institute. Have any of you taken her course? Thoughts? Advice?

Thanks in advance!

 

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I recently started a foot care business, but things have been slow to start.  I'm in a rural area.  I'm not sure if that plays a role.

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That can definitely make a difference.

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Hello, I came across this thread and wanted to know if this was something LVNs are able to do? I'm currently residing in California and with the growing need for foot are as regular access to podiatrist is becoming increasingly difficult for most patients. I checked the board and know we are able to perform "routine foot care" trim nails/file, things of that sort, but no procedures such as ingrown toe nail removals. 
Any advice would help really, I would like to start helping those in this community if I'm able to

thanks a bunch 

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Specializes in Wound Care / Foot Care / Case Management.
Andrew Brito said:

Hello, I came across this thread and wanted to know if this was something LVNs are able to do? I'm currently residing in California and with the growing need for foot are as regular access to podiatrist is becoming increasingly difficult for most patients. I checked the board and know we are able to perform "routine foot care" trim nails/file, things of that sort, but no procedures such as ingrown toe nail removals. 
Any advice would help really, I would like to start helping those in this community if I'm able to

thanks a bunch 

Hi, Andrew,

Does your Board also state rather or not you can perform nail care on diabetics? Also, see if you are required to have a provider's order before seeing a patient. 

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For anyone who is thinking of starting a foot care business in CA, I can tell you what I found out when I looked into this last year. I am a BSN, RN with over 20 years' experience in nursing. I had performed foot care in a previous job. I looked at the BRN regulations and could not see a prohibition to doing this and with an online search I saw there are many nurses with foot care businesses in CA. I proceeded to take the foot care course in Rainier, WA, which was an excellent course with a lot of opportunity to practice. I purchased equipment to start the business and started contacting foot care nurses listed on the info I got from the course. That is when I discovered the problem. One of the nurses I contacted told me she had asked the CA Board of Nursing 2 years prior to starting her business if it was within the nursing scope of practice to have a foot care business. She did not receive an answer until 2 years later, after she had decided to go ahead and had invested money in the start-up. The Board's opinion was a resounding "NO", it is not within the RN scope of practice. In order to operate an independent business, you would have to be a Nurse Practitioner. I subsequently spoke with many CA nurses who are aware of the opinion, as the nurse who had received it circulated it, but have too much invested in the business already and are going to continue, hoping the Board is too busy to start tracking down foot care nurses. That may be true, but I also discovered that an RN cannot legally get an LLC for a nursing business, without approval from the BRN. That means your personal finances would be at risk in the event of a lawsuit. Besides not wanting to practice beyond my scope, that was a risk I certainly would not take.   
 

There are states that do allow an RN to perform foot care without a doctor's supervision (WA, for instance). Unless our Board reconsiders, CA nurses are shut out of the opportunity for independent practice. You can work as a foot care nurse for a facility or a chiropractor's office, if you can find anyone hiring. If you do, the pay is not likely to be very high and probably wouldn't be worth the investment to get a foot care certification.

I hope others can benefit from my experience with this topic before spending big bucks on a course, equipment, and foot care nurse certification.
 

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Specializes in Occupational Health.

Well, that's very strange. I just went to the AFCNA conference in Minneapolis in April where I sat with a whole table of nurses practicing in California - both in the Bay area and southern CA. 

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Yes, there are many nurses who have foot care businesses in CA. From my research, I believe this is beyond the RN scope of practice in CA, unless they are working in a practice run by a physician, podiatrist, or NP and are not working as sole proprietors of their own businesses. Some may not be aware of the BRN's opinion; many are but have decided to do it anyway. One nurse with a foot-care business told me, "Just don't contact the Board and ask if you can do it"

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Specializes in Occupational Health.

I think that foot care nursing is not really well known by boards of nursing throughout the country and they don't know what to make of us. It's interesting that it took the board 2 years to get back to you. 

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Specializes in Pediatrics and foot care.

Hello fellow foot care nurses!  I am interested in updates from you!  I have just completed my CEUs and have done the hands on training.  I need to come up with the name for my business, check that it's not in use in Texas or trademarked and take the CFCS national exam. Are any of you part of the AFCNA Facebook group?  I'd love to connect if you've been through the process or are still figuring it all out like I am.  There was a question about franchising in this thread too.  I have been thinking about that too. There is such a need for this as well as places to do the hands on training. I went to the annual conference in Minnesota April 2024 and had been trying to find somewhere to get the hands on training ever since. In August, I saw a post in the AFCNA Facebook group about one spot left at an upcoming training location.  I was determined to get that spot!  I was able to secure it and completed my training with Heather Fogg, RN, BSN, CFCS at Fundamental Foot Care in Maine.  She trained with Dr. Julia Overstreet in Washington 5 years ago. Please reach out to me! I have questions and would love your input.  What order of things you took, what things would you avoid, what would you do differently, how things are going, etc. 

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nursedebbieg. I was hoping to get an update on your endeavors. I look forward to hearing from you!

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