Home health aides know that that proper foot care is essential to people with heart disease, diabetes, and other health conditions that cause poor blood circulation in the feet. Foot disorders are usually painful and reduce seniors’ mobility thus requiring additional assistance from their home health aide in Westerville, Ohio. They may examine and tend to their elderly patients’ feet on a regular basis to ensure that their conditions do not worsen.

As part of our home health care services in Ohio, here’s how caregivers at Buckeye Home Health Care assist patients through regular foot care:

• Examine patients’ bottom feet for cracks, splinters, cuts, blisters, and pressure sores. These should show signs of healing after 24 hours. Otherwise, caregivers should contact the patient’s doctor.
• Check for ingrown toenails as part of toenail care. After clipping toenails, caregivers will need to file the toenails in all angles and round out edges to prevent ingrown nails.
• Help seniors protect their feet by wearing socks and shoes all the time. This will help them avoid foot injuries. Injured feet put them at high risk of infections which may lead to amputation.
• Ensure that patients’ socks and shoes fit properly. Socks should be seamless and do not have too tight top binding which can inhibit blood flow. Caregivers must also examine that patients’ shoes are not ill-fitting as these cause foot pain, especially when they are too small.
• Encourage proper foot and leg stretching. Skilled nursing in Chillicothe, Ohio can teach elderly patients how to properly stretch their feet and encourage them to do it regularly. This is important to do since stretching reduces muscle tension and addresses knot formations.

Do you have other foot care tips? Share it with us!