One of the great things about being the Foot Blogger Chick for Evanston Podiatric Surgeons and the Mag Mile Foot and Ankle Institute is getting to know the staff. It really brings home that there are doctor’s offices that are patient centered –the staff likes people and they want to help.
Recently, I had a chance to sit down with Dr. Kari Chase to talk about her feelings regarding podiatry and running. Let me tell you how personable she is –I talked my head off. Yes, I told her everything. I think she now has all my passwords! She is that friendly and nice. She is exactly the type of doctor that you would want to go to for help – friendly and a true people person.
Dr. Chase grew up in southern Wisconsin and attended the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. She has always been a very active person. In school she played volley ball and ran track. She knew that she wanted to go into medicine and she thought it would be perfect to work with sports teams. This led to her interest in podiatry. She loved the fact that she can work with other athletes and help them. While attending the Scholl College of Podiatric Medicine, she found that she loved surgery especially foot and ankle surgery. She loves working with patients and being able to see them through the entire care experience. She is proud of the personal touch she can give to patients. This is one of the reasons that she is so happy to be with Evanston Podiatric Surgeons and the Mag Mile Foot and Ankle Institute . The patient centered concept that the office believes in suits her perfectly.
Running is a long term interest for Dr. Chase. She runs regularly herself and has plenty of tips for runners. We talked about a number of running topics. We started with shoes. (Of course!) Dr. Chase talked about how important it is to know your foot when you are buying shoes. Some of us over pronate and some under pronate. It is important to know which shoes will accommodate and make your foot feel good during your run. In order to really get shoes that fit, she strongly recommends a specialty running store. The clerks in those stores are trained to fit the shoe to your foot and running style. If you are running distances, you don’t want your shoes to be a detriment.
Dr. Chase gave me a great tip! We were talking about how often you need to change your running shoes. She told me that one way to tell that your shoes are getting too old is to look at the compression of the heel of the shoe. If it is very compressed then you know to get a new pair. Also she suggested that buying running shoes on sale is not always a good idea. If the shoes are on sale because they have been sitting in the store not selling, then they will have had some deterioration before you even start wearing them. Best to make sure the shoes are in good shape before you start beating them up on the trail.
While Dr. Chase grew up “behind the cheddar curtain”, she is now a city person. She and her husband live in Chicago and love to participate in all the excitement that can be part of city life.
Dr. Chase is the Director of the Mag Mile Foot and Ankle Institute that Evanston Podiatric Surgeons opened downtown Chicago earlier this year. Please stop by and see the office and the friendly staff. They would love a chance to say hello.
Your Pal,
The Foot Blogger Chick
If you have questions, don’t hesitate to send them to footbloggerchick@gmail.com or leave them in the comment section below. I am not a doctor but I check with one before answering questions.
Trivia Question of the week – In 1900 the first all-purpose athletic shoe was designed. While made mostly of canvas, it also featured a rubber rim. This was possible because of whose discovery of volcanized rubber?
Find the answer on our Facebook page – Evanston Podiatric Surgeons – on June28. While you’re there, please take a moment to “like” us.
Or
Follow us on twitter – @EvPodiatric and the answer will be tweeted on Friday morning as well.
The very nice doctors at Evanston Podiatric Surgeons have opened a new location! They are very excited to have an office on the “Magnificent Mile” in Chicago. So, if live or work downtown, help is even closer! Stop in and say “Hello and Congrats”. They would love to meet you. They are really that friendly!
Mag Mile Foot and Ankle Institute
333 N. Michigan Avenue Suite 1825
Chicago, IL 60601
312-236-3507