Sprained Ankle? Smashed Toe? Sports Injury? Gardening Accident? The list of urgent foot and ankle injuries can be extensive and expensive, but there are options! Instead of rushing over the the E.R. or urgent care, try calling a podiatry office.  There are several advantages of going directly to the podiatrist for any and all foot and ankle problems.  First and best of all:  minimal wait time!  We can always make room for urgent cases.  Secondly, we take digital x-rays in our office that can be immediately processed and evaluated.  This is good for the sake of the doctor because we need certain views (which are often not properly done in other settings) and good for the patient because he/she will not need a second round of x-rays.  We apply splints and casts and dispense fracture shoes or boots on site.  We can numb up a toe and reduce a fracture then splint it.  Another advantage is that we are very savvy with numbing the foot and toes and make the procedure as comfortable as possible.  Sadly, we often see patients who have had nail trauma or fractures and go to other facilities where numbing injections are not frequently given and thus they get stabbed much more than necessary which is very traumatic.

Money is always something to consider, especially during these hard economic times.  A typical ER visit can cost well over $500.  Usually the emergency room or urgent care center then recommends following up with a podiatrist anyway so there are additional costs involved.  Why not save your money and go directly to the specialist where all your needs can be addressed at once AND in a timely fashion?  This includes ankle fractures and Achilles ruptures.  Even severe fractures can be splinted in the office and surgery can be scheduled in an outpatient setting.  

Our Thousand Oaks office ALWAYS has a physician on call after office hours so if you are not sure where to go, we can help guide you.  We see child and adult foot and ankle problems, injuries and general foot and ankle care. We can also open the office on weekends for an additional fee (which is probably still cheaper than going elsewhere!).  It really does pay off in more ways than one by going directly to the podiatrist for all foot and ankle needs.