Head practitioner
Aine McNamara
BSc Pod, MChS, RGN
Aine holds both an Honors degree in General Nursing and Podiatry and is a dedicated hard-working professional with experience of working as a sole-trader and as part of multi-disciplinary teams in Ireland and the UK.
She now has over 20 years of experience in healthcare, during which time she has developed services for good patient care provision and raised awareness of the importance of lower limb and foot health.
After 4 years of in-depth Podiatric study, Aine graduated with an Honors degree proving her specialist skills in the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of disease and dysfunction in the lower limb in people with arthritis, diabetes, sports injuries and those requiring nail surgery.
Toetalcare positions itself to play an important part in the lower limb health management of its patients. Toetalcare provides podiatric services in the home, in Spiddal Medical Centre and in various nursing homes throughout County Galway. We also take part in conducting community activity, helping the over 60’s to stay mobile and independent.
Linda O’ Connell
Linda O’ Connell joined the Toetal Care Podiatry team in April 2019. She graduated from The National University of Ireland, Galway in 2017 with a Bachelor of Science (Hons), Podiatric Medicine Degree.
Throughout her four years of college, she gained a wealth of experience in all aspects of podiatry: wound care, diabetes assessments, podopaediatrics, nail surgery, sports podiatry and routine podiatry treatments.
Linda completed a postgraduate programme in NUIG on The Management of the Diabetic Foot. She hopes to complete a Masters in Podiatric Medicine which will broaden her knowledge and overall skill set.
Linda has a special interest in biomechanics.
Podiatry explained
Podiatry is the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of common and more complex lower limb pathologies (disorders) associated with toe-nails, soft tissue and the musculoskeletal system. The purpose of podiatry is to sustain and/or improve individual foot health.
Interesting foot facts
- The average adult takes 4000-6000 steps per day. Over a lifetime this equates to walking around the world an average of 4 times!
- 80% of the adult population have a foot related problem. Women are 4 times more likely than men to have a foot complaint.
- Verrucae are small growths on the foot caused by infection with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). 5% of children and adolescents have verrucae.
- There are 250, 000 sweat glands in our feet. A pair of feet will give off approximately half a pint of perspiration per day!
- The foot is an intricate structure containing 26 bones, 33 joints, 107 ligaments, 19 muscles and multiple tendons holding it all together and helping it move in a variety of different ways.