New Podiatry School in Texas

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I've heard rumors that there has been a new school approved in Texas.

Yes I know they have tried and failed in the past, but this sounds like it might actually be happening...

If this is true, what are these people doing? They can barley take care of the residency shortage. Now they wanna add more people to a job market that eats their own? I have friends that took embarrassingly low compensation out of training. How does adding more supply help our demand? These people running our profession are already a joke with ABFAS failing so many people year in and year out and the residency issues. If this is true it takes it to a whole other level.
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I can’t imagine another school opening while other schools are having difficulty filling seats and/or getting qualified applicants. The number of applications for present schools is embarrassingly low.
 
Do you have any additional details? I was talking to an old pod awhile back who was spinning me some old rumor mill stories about the guy who started the Arizona/California (don't remember which) school wanting to start something in Texas. The story he told was that they were going to start the school in some deep west or deep south border town. The only medical school on the border is a Texas Tech facility in El Paso. Integrating yourself into something already standing would save you a tremendous amount in start up costs. Texans love Texas, but I'm not sure most people would be stoked about deep west Texas. Anyway, not a fan of more schools. The ones we have are already terrible and people are already pushing to ruin residencies further with Shapiro's 2 tracks path. I'll be curious to see how bad enrollment falls when that gets officially implemented.
 
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ExperiencedDPM said:
I can’t imagine another school opening while other schools are having difficulty filling seats and/or getting qualified applicants. The number of applications for present schools is embarrassingly low.
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That is my thoughts too. I feel like we are starting to get more qualified people and doing this will set us way behind. You look at that and how saturated certain fields are becoming like Pharmacy and Dental, I don't want podiatry to be like that too.
 
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heybrother said:
Do you have any additional details? I was talking to an old pod awhile back who was spinning me some old rumor mill stories about the guy who started the Arizona/California (don't remember which) school wanting to start something in Texas. The story he told was that they were going to start the school in some deep west or deep south border town. The only medical school on the border is a Texas Tech facility in El Paso. Integrating yourself into something already standing would save you a tremendous amount in start up costs. Texans love Texas, but I'm not sure most people would be stoked about deep west Texas. Anyway, not a fan of more schools. The ones we have are already terrible and people are already pushing to ruin residencies further with Shapiro's 2 tracks path. I'll be curious to see how bad enrollment falls when that gets officially implemented.
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I had a friend who told me about a conference call talking about this. They weren't involved directly with it so the information was limited. It sound liked it was approved but maybe they were just talking about how to make it happen. But the friend said it sounded like it would be in the super south of Texas. Thats all I heard. I hope its just talk and nothing will come of it. I could mention a name, but don't want to do so on the forum.
 
I could see them setting up in the RGV. Probably could make some big $$$ down there off a school.
 
It was Lawrence Harkless who wanted to start a Texas podiatry school but the idea got canned because it had something to do with tuition for medical school in Texas being significantly cheaper compared to the other medical schools. I think the powers that be would think that would be unfair to the other schools as majority of students would want to go there. It never happened obviously.

Another school accomplishes nothing. The profession is over saturated and there are not enough jobs for new graduates. We will see more and more graduates end up going solo because associate jobs with current podiatry groups are terrible and there is not enough quality jobs to go around

@heybrother what is this shapiro two track residency thing you are talking about? It would make sense that a non surgical TFP podiatrist like him would fight for making two different tracks for residency training. Further complicating our training to the public. Worst idea ever.
 
So there was a discussion about it here.

forums.studentdoctor.net

Should All Podiatrists Be Primarily Surgeons?

I wanted to know your opinions after reading the following article by Dr. JARROD SHAPIRO https://www.podiatrym.com/pdf/2019/3/Shapiro319web.pdf
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But then it gets worse. So apparently CPME is looking for feedback on residencies. The people who run Podiatry Present (a garbage product and a garbage conference) sent out a survey asking for resident feedback and putting forward their suggestion which I suppose they intend to put forward to CPME. They are suggesting that at your second year your residency director assigns you to either an advanced surgical tract or basically a clinical tract. "Clinical tract" people will only get further training in essentially forefoot though the authors were taking suggestions on what are advanced and non-advanced procedures - amusingly, arthroeresis was one of their suggestions for non-advanced.

Its a complicated question and there's a lot of opinions on both sides, but the way they describe implementing it is in my opinion is horrible.
 
I think opening up a school in Texas would be successful. Sure, the other schools may have trouble with their own programs, but how many of these schools are actually located in a dire need for podiatry type of population. I don't understand why there isn't a podiatry program in Texas when we have the greatest need for podiatrists with such a large podiatric population. I am about to interview to podiatry school and as a Texas resident it upsets me that I can't complete it in-state.
 
juagorilla said:
I think opening up a school in Texas would be successful. Sure, the other schools may have trouble with their own programs, but how many of these schools are actually located in a dire need for podiatry type of population. I don't understand why there isn't a podiatry program in Texas when we have the greatest need for podiatrists with such a large podiatric population. I am about to interview to podiatry school and as a Texas resident it upsets me that I can't complete it in-state.
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We need another podiatry school like we all need another hole in our heads
 
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juagorilla said:
I think opening up a school in Texas would be successful. Sure, the other schools may have trouble with their own programs, but how many of these schools are actually located in a dire need for podiatry type of population. I don't understand why there isn't a podiatry program in Texas when we have the greatest need for podiatrists with such a large podiatric population. I am about to interview to podiatry school and as a Texas resident it upsets me that I can't complete it in-state.
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If you take a look at how many Texans are at each school already.....you wouldn't be saying this.

Compound this with the amount of DPMs who actually want to let you shadow......consider me jaded by the enthusiasm for podiatric medicine in Texas. The older docs here seem to like to eat their young.
 
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Just throwing this out there:

We should make a rule that nobody over 50 gets any say in what "the future of this profession" looks like.
 
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Sartorius P.O.D. said:
Just throwing this out there:

We should make a rule that nobody over 50 gets any say in what "the future of this profession" looks like.
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Those are the surgeons that have got us as far as we have and the only ones (majority, always exceptions) with real political experience.

We think restrictions are bad now? The podiatric surgeons who are 50+ had it way worse 30 years ago and fought for our current standards. Not that us youthful surgeons dont need to continue to promote ourselves and educate the community further.
 
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DYK343 said:
Those are the surgeons that have got us as far as we have and the only ones (majority, always exceptions) with real political experience.

We think restrictions are bad now? The podiatric surgeons who are 50+ had it way worse 30 years ago and fought for our current standards. Not that us youthful surgeons dont need to continue to promote ourselves and educate the community further.
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Yes they did. Now they control the game. They are the ones eating the young DPMs up and spitting them out. They are the ones hiring associates and changing them every 1-2 years and making a killing off their work. They are the ones who have set the bylaws at hospitals making it harder for young DPMs get surgical privileges.

Yes they fought to get the laws to where they are now but now they control it and make it challenging for the future of this profession. Trust me that’s a fact


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CutsWithFury said:
Yes they did. Now they control the game. They are the ones eating the young DPMs up and spitting them out. They are the ones hiring associates and changing them every 1-2 years and making a killing off their work. They are the ones who have set the bylaws at hospitals making it harder for young DPMs get surgical privileges.

Yes they fought to get the laws to where they are now but now they control it and make it challenging for the future of this profession. Trust me that’s a fact


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I cant really argue against your points. Our turn is next.
 
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The difference is they fought (not that they actually had to put up a fight in many cases) against restrictions from MD/DOs. In general, today we fight restrictions put in place by DPMs. That's the real problem. There are plenty of places where another podiatrist is more likely to be the reason you can't practice within your scope, than an orthopedic surgeon. It's sad.
 
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dtrack22 said:
The difference is they fought (not that they actually had to put up a fight in many cases) against restrictions from MD/DOs. In general, today we fight restrictions put in place by DPMs. That's the real problem. There are plenty of places where another podiatrist is more likely to be the reason you can't practice within your scope, than an orthopedic surgeon. It's sad.
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Exactly. This is why this has turned into a bad profession. A profession of opportunists with no real power.

Why do the same 10-15 DPMs lecture every single year at ACFAS? Are they the only ones who know how to do surgery? No they don’t. But they are the gatekeepers and they don’t let anybody else in.

The truth is that if the orthos, who they work along side with, wanted them out they would be pushed out. Nothing they’ve accomplished would keep them from getting pushed out.

In return they restrict the younger DPMs. They intimidate, defame, restrict anybody who could threaten their volume. FACT


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I agree with Mr Fury. My good friend runs a show at a large teaching institution and lectures a lot at these **** shows. He is the only one doing ankles in the ENTIRE group of pods.
 
What is interesting is how under represented Texas is in residencies compared to places like Penn, Michigan etc.
 
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From my experience Texas is not very pro podiatry. Pretty ortho dominated. I think it is gradually coming around though.
 
If you want to feel the wrath of orthos, try Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, and Arkansas.
 
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I just received word from a “well known” peer that there will be a pod school in Texas by year 2021.
 
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I'm semi-close to the area. I shall see if they would like to hire me for $150K + health insurance/401k to fly into town 2.5 days a week. Give 2-3 lectures I copy from Mann's, spend a morning in clinic. I trim 5 nails on 1 foot. The students trims 5 nails on the other while I regale them with stories from residency that are not representative of the skill level I practice at anymore in my no-call-punt-em-all private practice job.

Also, yeah, terrible idea. Did we somehow come into a surplus of residencies or have NY/Barry/Ohio agreed to finally close their doors? :)
 
They announced on their FB last year August.

There will be 9 school of Podiatric medicine and 1 school of Podiatry

 
I'm also not in favor of another school. Residency placements just got better within the last 3-4 years, and this new addition will only make matching more difficult!
 
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I misremembered where they were - I'm no where close. Will need more $$$ for me to fly down.

So apparently the school in question has a medical school but it had its 1st medical school class in 2016. Lot going on I guess.
 
Really dumb. Harkless needs to stop. I was part of the residency shortage year because this guy opened up Western and created almost no additional residency spots.

There are a lot of people who hold resentment towards him. No Western students were supposed to be able to get a residency position unless he created an equal number of residency spots. He created only a few spots and as a result created a 3-4 year residency shortage crisis.

Our applicant pool is already very low. We dont need to drown it out more with subpar students.
 
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DYK343 said:
Really dumb. Harkless needs to stop. I was part of the residency shortage year because this guy opened up Western and created almost no additional residency spots.

There are a lot of people who hold resentment towards him. No Western students were supposed to be able to get a residency position unless he created an equal number of residency spots. He created only a few spots and as a result created a 3-4 year residency shortage crisis.

Our applicant pool is already very low. We dont need to drown it out more with subpar students.
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Agreed, any graduating resident would agree that we don’t need more podiatrists, we need less. We are at high risk of reaching severe over saturation. Dr. Harkless may mean well, but he has done more harm than good. It’s a shame he didn’t learn the lesson the first time...
 
JohnnyFootball2016 said:
Agreed, any graduating resident would agree that we don’t need more podiatrists, we need less. We are at high risk of reaching severe over saturation. Dr. Harkless may mean well, but he has done more harm than good. It’s a shame he didn’t learn the lesson the first time...
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I assure you those involved know exactly what they're doing and what it will do to residency slots and admission numbers.

It is about money and clout. Nothing else.

Get your foot in the door first to reap the benefits. Everyone downstream suffers while you roll in the gold. That is the mentality.
 
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I have spoken to harkless a few times, and he is a very nice guy. Definitely not your typical slime ball podiatrist, but we don’t need or want another school.
 
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