Chris Foster, chiropodist and owner of Foster Foot Care Clinic, has found success in the small-town community of Fonthill. The clinic, which opened in May 2021, has seen steady growth over the years, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since opening, the clinic has served a diverse range of patients, from older adults needing routine foot care to younger individuals seeking orthotics.
Foster’s wife, Monica Foster, has stepped back from her role as a radiation therapist to help with the administrative side as well as help raise their young family. She emphasized that the clinic's success is built on its ability to connect with patients on a personal level.
"We prefer to get to know our patients and really build a relationship with them. That's why we chose to open a clinic in Fonthill instead of Toronto, where we lived for seven years," Monica Foster said.”
The Fosters have found that the community in Fonthill has been supportive of their business, with a strong preference for shopping locally.
"I just feel like Fonthill is very community-based...it has a really good community feel, and that's why we decided to move here and start a family," Monica Foster added.
Foster Foot Care Clinic is a foot care and orthotic center located in Fonthill. They offer services such as nail and skin care, custom-made orthotics, compression stockings and diabetes foot care.
Chris Foster is a registered chiropodist who specializes in foot health and offers local home visits. Although OHIP does not cover their services, many private insurance companies provide coverage.
Diabetes and foot care
Chris Foster started his career at a diabetes clinic. He explained that preventative foot care for people with diabetes is key to preventing serious issues before they occur, but a lack of understanding risks is one of the biggest issues he observed among patients.
"Unless someone knows a friend or has a family member who got an amputation or a bad infection — they didn't know the risks,” said Chris. “It's the lack of understanding of how diabetes can affect your feet and what the consequences are."
To address this issue, Chris Foster recommends that people with diabetes take preventative measures, such as avoiding walking in bare feet, inspecting their feet daily and seeking professional care for issues like calluses.
"There are things I can do, in a preventative sense, to deal with these general foot care needs that people will try to do on their own, and a lot of times they can’t do on their own,” he said. “Or, they think they can but aren’t able to do properly. And actually put themselves at risk.”
“There are hands-on things I can do in the clinic. There is advice I can give to set them up at home — they're here once every six or eight weeks for care, and I see them for 15 minutes. What are they doing for the rest of the time when they're at home? So it's getting them set up with things like that."
Chris Foster hopes that by educating people with diabetes on preventative care measures, they can avoid serious foot problems and improve their overall quality of life.
“Diabetes greatly impacts circulation, and feet are the furthest thing from the heart,” he added. “So usually, when circulation gets bad, the feet get the bad end of it first. Another thing is nerve damage. Diabetes causes some nerve damage that can actually cause people to lose sensation in their feet. So they really don't feel injuries to their feet, which may eventually cause infection," he explained.
Additionally, the distance from the eyes to the feet can make it difficult for people with diabetes to monitor their feet for issues.
Chris Foster loves that he can offer care and relieve people of foot pain. In some cases, people have been suffering for years before they see him, and he can get them pain-free in as little as one visit.
“I enjoy my work because patients come in for a 10 or 15-minute treatment, and they're pain-free for a while or pain-free forever going forward. It’s satisfying helping people out with things that can be corrected and fixed that they can't do on their own.”
The clinic is currently accepting new patients and encourages those in need of foot care services to reach out for an appointment today.
