Welcome to the Website of

Dr. Michael Zapf, DPM, MPH, FACFAS

 Thank you for visiting my website. I have been placing information and articles on this site for many years and have received millions of  hits during that time (and not that many of them were mine). I have designed it for people who like to read about their foot and ankle problems. Since I started the web site, I have added two associates to my practice, Dr. Darren Payne and Dr. Stephen Benson.  Since my site is filled with just my thoughts and opinions they are not, necessarily, shared by my colleagues. To see our less controversial (and less windy) practice web site, I offer you: www.ConejoFeet.com, the practice site for The Agoura Los Robles Podiatry Centers (ALRPC). The ALRPC practice site has a lot of material about our office, many of our policies and the registration forms to be filled out before your visit. I suggest all prospective patients visit www.ConejoFeet.com.

 I made the web site to give my patients the extra depth information that I don’t always have time to cover in the office visit. Visitors who are not my patients are welcome to browse the information found here. My younger colleagues are both under 50 and they, like many their age, do not favor in depth reading. They prefer their information presented to them in a few short, crisp bullet points. I, being of the, ahem, older generation, like to read about my ailments in greater depth. Here, I present the greater depth. If you ask a question about heel pain or bunions that I have not answered in my two monographs, I will quickly add it so that it is as complete as I can make it. If you agree with this philosophy, welcome to my page. If you correspond with me please let me know if you like the in depth reporting.

 Remember, this site is in no way intended to tell you how your own ailment or problem should be treated, only the approach I use when confronted with certain situations. Your problem may well be different from what you think it is and should always be evaluated by the appropriate professional, whether podiatrist, orthopedist or other authority. Please understand that I, nor anyone else, can offer you a proper diagnosis or treatment plan without seeing and feeling the problem at hand (foot?).  Happy reading.

 Sincerely, Michael Zapf, DPM, MPH, FACFAS, FACFAOM

 P.S. All the information in this web site is © by me and it is mine alone. No picture or any of the articles cannot be used by anyone without permission from me, personally.

01/08/2012

To Order Foot Supplies --> <-- click

Free Shoes!

Free Shoes?

Well, sorta. In a rare case of effective preventive medicine Medicare has decided to pay for a well fit pair of extra depth shoes to qualified Medicare recipients on an annual basis. To qualify for the shoes you must be under the care of an MD or Do for clinically diagnosed diabetes and have one of the following conditions:

Our office does supply these shoes and we have a display of them in our Thousand oaks office and you can order a pair if you qualify. Most Medicare patients with diabetes do qualify but some do not and it takes an examination of your feet to determine which you are. We will contact the doctor treating your diabetes and request a prescription for the shoes. In actuality the request should start with the primary treating MD or DO and many times it does. But all too often your diabetes doctor is unaware that this program exists and only find out about it when you come to our office for care.

THERE IS FRAUD OUT THERE!

The ad at the right appeared in a newspaper in Arizona and is clearly fraudulent. The shoes are NOT FREE - Medicare patients are still required to pay for any co-payments and deductibles. The company placing this ad shows up at a location, asks for your shoe size and the name of your doctor and sends you the pair of shoes. These charlatans are not trained or in any way qualified to fit these shoes and provide only the cheapest alternatives available. The shoes are supposed to be custom fit to your foot with accurate measurements and accurate follow-up. With these fly-by-night companies there is cleraly no compliance to this standard of care. They do not measure your foot and clearly do not follow up if the shoe does not fit or is the wrong size. Free diabetic shoes are a lot like a free lunch.

Send mail to (zfootdoc at doctor dot com) with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2000 Michael A. Zapf, D.P.M., F.A.C.F.A.S., F.A.C.F.AOA.M.
Last modified: January 08, 2012