Podiatry Supplies UK: What a Podiatry Clinic Needs (Checklist)

A podiatry clinic needs five groups of supplies: a treatment chair, instruments, decontamination equipment, padding and dressings, and infection control and waste supplies. In practice that means a podiatry chair, nail nippers, files, probes and scalpel blades (or sterile single-use instrument packs), an autoclave and sterilisation pouches if you reuse instruments, felt and foam padding, dressings, urea creams, gloves, and sharps bins placed where you work.

This guide walks through what to stock for a new or growing podiatry or foot health practice, with a checklist you can work from.

In this guide

• What supplies does a podiatry clinic need?
• Which podiatry chair should you choose?
• Which instruments does a podiatrist need?
• How should podiatry instruments be decontaminated?
• What padding and strapping materials should you stock?
• Which dressings and skin care products are useful?
• What PPE does a podiatry clinic need?
• How should a podiatry clinic dispose of sharps and waste?
• Frequently asked questions

What supplies does a podiatry clinic need?

Use this checklist to plan a new treatment room or restock an existing one. Quantities depend on how many patients you see and whether you also do home visits.

Area	What to stock	Why it matters
Treatment chair or couch	Podiatry chair with height adjustment and leg sections; a bariatric option if you see heavier patients	Patient comfort and a safe working height for you
Instruments	Nail nippers (straight, concave and ingrown), files, probes, scalpel handles and blades, or sterile single-use packs	Nail cutting, debridement and corn and callus care
Decontamination	Ultrasonic cleaner and instrument detergent, steam autoclave, sterilisation pouches	Safe reuse of stainless steel instruments
Padding and strapping	Semi-compressed felt, foams, fleecy web, Chirofix tape, tubular foam and gel digital products	Offloading and protecting painful areas between visits
Dressings	Low-adherent pads, foam and alginate dressings, adhesive retention tape	Covering wounds, ulcers and post-nail surgery sites
Skin care	Urea creams for dry skin and callus, emollients, antiseptic skin cleanser	Treatment and home care advice
PPE and hygiene	Nitrile gloves, aprons, masks or eye protection for drilling, hand hygiene products	Protecting you and your patients
Waste	Sharps bins near the point of use, clinical waste bags and bins, a licensed waste contract	Legal and safe disposal

Browse the full podiatry supplies range.

Which podiatry chair should you choose?

The chair is the biggest purchase in a podiatry room, and the one you use for every patient. Look at:

• Height adjustment: hydraulic chairs use a foot pump, electric chairs use a motor and handset or footswitch. Electric adjustment is quicker and easier on your back if you see many patients a day.
• Leg sections: split or divided leg sections let you work on one foot at a time and position each leg separately.
• Tilt and backrest: a tilting or powered backrest helps patients who cannot sit upright and gives you better access.
• Safe working load: if you treat heavier patients, choose a bariatric chair such as the Plinth 2000 Bariatric Podiatry Chair, which has a 320 kg lifting capacity and hoist access.
• Upholstery: wipe-clean, fire-resistant covering that stands up to regular disinfection.

Which instruments does a podiatrist need?

A routine nail and skin care kit is built around a small set of instruments:

• Nail nippers: straight and concave nippers for general nail cutting, plus ingrown nail nippers with fine jaws for working in the nail sulcus.
• Files and probes: Black's files to smooth nail edges, and probes to explore the sulcus.
• Scalpel handles and blades: for debriding callus and enucleating corns.
• Burs and drills: for reducing thickened nails, with dust extraction where possible.

Most clinics keep several sets so that one is in use while the others are being decontaminated. For home visits, or if you prefer not to reprocess instruments, sterile single-use packs are an alternative.

For nail surgery, the Instrapac Nail Surgery Pack with McKays Elevator includes a nail elevator, Thwaites nail splitter, mosquito artery forceps and a Beaver mini blade handle in one sterile, single-use tray.

How should podiatry instruments be decontaminated?

Reusable instruments must be cleaned, then sterilised, between every patient. A typical cycle is:

1. Clean: remove debris straight after use, then clean the instruments, often in an ultrasonic bath with an instrument detergent.
2. Rinse and dry: rinse off the detergent and dry the instruments.
3. Inspect: check for damage, blunt jaws or rust, and take damaged instruments out of use.
4. Pack and sterilise: pack instruments in sterilisation pouches and sterilise them in a steam autoclave.
5. Store and record: store pouches clean and dry until use, and keep records of each autoclave cycle.

Follow your local infection prevention and control policy and the manufacturer's instructions for each instrument and machine. See our range of autoclaves and washer-disinfectors, including benchtop models such as the Eschmann Little Sister SES 2010.

What padding and strapping materials should you stock?

Padding is cut chairside to take pressure off corns, callus, the ball of the foot and other painful areas until the next appointment. Most clinics keep:

• Semi-compressed and compressed wool felt in several thicknesses, for pads, wedges and apertures.
• Foams such as polyfoam and swanfoam for softer cushioning.
• Fleecy web for thin, comfortable protection, and pre-cut corn and bunion pads.
• Adhesive strapping such as Hapla Chirofix to hold padding and dressings in place.
• Tubular foam and gel digital products to protect toes between visits.

For longer-term support, patients may need insoles or orthoses. Our guide to the best orthotic insoles compares ready-made options.

Which dressings and skin care products are useful?

Keep low-adherent dressing pads, foam and alginate dressings and adhesive retention tape for small wounds, ulcers and after nail surgery. See our dressings and wound care range.

Urea creams are widely used for dry skin and callus, and many clinics stock them so patients can continue care at home.

What PPE does a podiatry clinic need?

Wear disposable gloves for every patient and change them between patients. Nitrile gloves such as these Aurelia Sonic powder-free nitrile examination gloves avoid latex allergy problems. Aprons, and masks or eye protection when drilling or reducing nails, protect you from dust and splashes. Stock hand hygiene products at every sink, and browse the full medical gloves range.

How should a podiatry clinic dispose of sharps and waste?

Under the Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013, employers must place clearly marked, secure containers close to where medical sharps are used, and avoid recapping needles unless a risk assessment shows it is needed. In a podiatry room that means a sharps bin within reach of the chair, so used blades go straight in.

Dressings, gloves and other contaminated waste go in the correct clinical waste stream, collected by a licensed contractor. Our guide to sharps disposal regulations explains bin colours, sizes and paperwork, and the sharps bins range covers every size.

Frequently asked questions

What supplies does a podiatry clinic need?

A podiatry clinic needs a treatment chair, nail nippers, files, probes and scalpels (or sterile single-use instrument packs), a way to decontaminate reusable instruments, padding and strapping materials, dressings, skin care creams, gloves and other PPE, and sharps bins and clinical waste containers.

Should a podiatrist use single-use or reusable instruments?

Both are common. Reusable stainless steel instruments suit busy clinics that can clean and sterilise them properly. Sterile single-use packs remove the need for reprocessing, which suits domiciliary visits and clinics without an autoclave. Follow your local infection prevention and control policy.

How do you sterilise podiatry instruments?

Reusable instruments are cleaned first, often in an ultrasonic bath with an instrument detergent, then rinsed, dried and sterilised in a steam autoclave. Many clinics pack them in sterilisation pouches with an indicator that changes colour, so they stay sterile until use.

What scalpel blade do podiatrists use?

Blade choice is down to the clinician. Smaller curved blades such as the No. 15 are often used for precise work and fit a No. 3 handle. Always dispose of used blades straight into a sharps bin.

What is semi-compressed felt used for in podiatry?

Semi-compressed wool felt is cut into pads, wedges and apertures to take pressure off painful areas such as corns, callus and the ball of the foot. It comes in several thicknesses.

Do podiatry clinics need sharps bins?

Yes. The Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013 require employers to place clearly marked, secure containers close to where medical sharps are used. Used blades and needles go straight into the sharps bin, which is then collected by a licensed waste contractor.

Do you need to be registered to work as a podiatrist in the UK?

Yes. Chiropodist and podiatrist are protected titles in the UK, and practitioners using them must be registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).

Sources: The Health and Safety (Sharp Instruments in Healthcare) Regulations 2013, regulation 5; Regulated Professions Register: chiropodist and podiatrist; manufacturer product information. Always follow your local infection prevention and control policy.