As an entrepreneur, Dr. Schlomo Schmuel has built a thriving business specializing in Podiatric Medicine.
Dr. Schmuel has nine locations for his business with his primary location being in Los Angeles, California on Sunset Boulevard. Sunset Foot Clinic is equipped with state-of-the-art technology. He has incorporated a staff of highly trained compassionate and caring professionals to serve patients with any foot and ankle conditions. In addition, as an accredited ambulatory surgical center, they can perform limb salvage of the foot & ankle as well as complex reconstructive surgery.
Dr. Schlomo Schmuel started his career as a graduate of the College of Podiatric Medicine in Independence, Ohio on the campus of Kent State University in 1991. He did his Internship in Podiatric Surgery and performed his Residency in Podiatric Surgery at the University of Southern California Medical Center in Los Angeles County.
Looking to the future, Dr. Schlomo Schmuel plans to continue practicing Podiatric Medicine. He finds great joy and satisfaction in his practice. According to the doctor, his patients tend to recover rather quickly. It is almost immediate gratification being able to see his patients make recovery so quickly. He considers that to be a bonus of his specialty.
Dr. Schlomo Schmuel is devoted to his family and enjoys spending as much quality time with them as possible. He also believes in staying fit by walking, jogging, or cycling. In addition, he enjoys flying to exotic places as he has his own pilot’s license.
Why did you choose to become a doctor?
I had a family member who practiced podiatry. It seemed to be a very rewarding career. I always knew that I wanted to become a doctor. In fact, it was a matter of which specialty I would choose. When I was considering my direction, I thought about the lifestyle and satisfaction that went along with this specific field. Knowing that patients elect to have surgery and that they tend to recover quickly, was another consideration.
What area do you specialize in?
Over the past 25 years, I have specialized in podiatry for a few reasons. I enjoy helping people. I find that the field of podiatry is very rewarding because for most people who have surgery, elect to have the surgery done. Most people tend to recover quite quickly once the procedure is done with. It is almost immediate gratification for both myself and my patients. I consider that to be a bonus of the specialty. Other professions have a much longer recovery time.
Why did you choose this specialty?
A family member introduced me to the field when I was younger. He had an excellent standard of living. More specifically, he was able to help people as well as have the satisfaction of patients recovering very quickly. I have become well known within my field which allows me to have a thriving practice for almost 25 years.
What is your daily routine?
I start my mornings with my wife and children. When I arrive at my office and begin to see my patients. We perform a variety of treatments for bunions, heel pain, diabetic care, hammertoe, and many other procedures. When the work day is over, I spend my time with my family in the evening. I exercise by either walking, jogging or cycling. Partaking in physical activities is what helps me stay in shape and counteract the office job that I have.
When you look forward in your career, what trend in medicine do you see impacting your specialty the most? Is it for the better or worse? Why?
Baby boomers are the most significant trend in our office. As baby-boomers age, there is a direct correlation for the demand of podiatrist care. We can care for patients right from our office. We are an Accredited Ambulatory Surgical Center. That means we are capable of performing surgery directly from our location. In fact, we have done extensive surgeries as well as uncomplicated surgeries to assist our patients. We can provide vascular testing for nerves and we have ultrasound as well as fluoroscopy. We are able to test and deliver solutions for any foot and ankle problems.
What do you love about your job?
The most gratification that I get is when I see the results of my patients after I have treated them. Most patients heal very quickly, so they really appreciate the help I am able to provide to alleviate their pain.
What would you consider to be the greatest accomplishment in your career?
I consider my greatest accomplishment in building a practice that has stood the test of time. Many businesses close within a few years, but my business has been serving this community for twenty-five years. We have a reputation based on the integrity of the service that we provide to the people that we serve. We are compassionate and caring and always make sure to take our clients’ needs as our top priority.
Tell our readers about some of your volunteer activities.
I am looking forward to volunteering by educating people on how to prevent certain conditions before it becomes an issue. I want the community to know what services we can provide if they perceive an issue that we may be able to address.
What do you do in order to mentally separate yourself from your job?
I really enjoy spending quality time with my family. I am a commercial pilot for private planes. I also go jogging, walking, or cycling. I stay positive and keep myself healthy.
Where do you want to be in your career in five years?
I look to the future when I investigate the latest methods that can benefit my patients. I stay on top of the latest procedures as well. We provide shockwave therapy and laser surgery now. On top of that, we will continue to provide the latest techniques to benefit our patients. I think we will be able to serve our community well as the baby-boomers are more apt to require our services.
Is there anything else that you would like to share?
One of the things that I really appreciate about our proximity to the legendary Happy Foot/Sad Foot sign. It has such a rich history in the local lore of the Los Angeles community. One side has the name and phone number of the podiatry clinic, while the other side depicts a huge image of a human foot. For over twenty years, people have been known to use the rotation of the sign to make decisions. As the story goes, college students would use the last rotation of the day as a sign to either blow off responsibility or not, dependent upon which side was facing them at the end of the day.