Howard Feigel, Founder

Howard Feigel, the founder of Pedorthic Services, helped establish the pedorthic profession in Canada and provided vision and leadership to the development of the post-graduate diploma program in pedorthics at the University of Western Ontario. Howard founded Pedorthic Services in 1981, expanding from a solo practice to a collaboration of 10 pedorthists, supported by a specialized orthotic laboratory.

Howard Feigel Memorial Award
On Howard’s death in March 2004, the Pedorthic Association of Canada—together with Howard’s family, colleagues and friends—established the Howard Feigel Memorial Award at the University of Western Ontario. Awarded annually to one full-time student in the Diploma in Pedorthics program as selected by the Western Centre for Continuing Studies. Award recipients since the award’s establishment are

* 2005 Kimberly Coates
* 2006 Lyndsey McCann

Instructions to view the Howard Feigel Memorial Award

1. Follow this link: https://studentservices.uwo.ca/secure/Awards/AwardSearch.cfm

2. Select 'Continuing Studies' from left-hand Faculty menu

3. Select 'Howard Feigel Memorial Award' from the right-hand Award List menu

Our Collaborative Professional Group

Pedorthic Services is a collaborative group of 11 Canadian Certified Pedorthists practicing in 20 locations across Central and Southern Ontario. We work in a variety of clinic settings, including multidisciplinary sports medicine clinics, wellness centres and fitness – focused facilities. In these settings, we work with primary care physicians, sports medicine doctors, orthopaedic surgeons, physiatrists, and an array of rehabilitation disciplines, including physiotherapists, athletic therapists and massage therapists. The complementary disciplines create synergies in approach and effectiveness and providing convenience for our patients.

We are active members of the Pedorthic Association of Canada and the College of Pedorthics of Canada, contributing to the advancement of the profession and to knowledge and practice in the fields of biomechanics and chronic disease management and fitness.

Pedorthic Services’ Commitment to Learning & Evidence Based Practice

At Pedorthic Services, we advance our professional knowledge and practice in several ways:

WE PARTICIPATE.........in multi-disciplinary sports medicine clinics in academic settings, including the University of Western Ontario, University of Waterloo and Brock University.

WE CONTRIBUTE.......to research projects at the University of Waterloo and the Wolf Biomechanics Lab at the University of Western Ontario.

WE ATTEND, ORGANIZE AND SPONSOR.......educational programs and research activities.

London-based certified pedorthist Colin Dombroski hosts an annual Foot and Lower-Extremity Symposium, proceeds of which are donated to further biomechanical and foot orthoses research. www.footsymposium.com

Research and Education Commitments

We are active in research in biomechanics and pedorthics, advancing knowledge and practice in both areas.

Our ongoing contributions to professional education include:

* teaching sessions for year one residents in the family medicine program
at the University of Western Ontario
* presentations to professional meetings and symposia
* practicum placements for students enrolled in the Diploma in Pedorthics Course
at the University of Western Ontario
* volunteer placements offered to undergraduate students with an interest in Pedorthics

Some of our present and past professional contributions include

To the College of Pedorthics of Canada:

* Director of Education
* Education Committee member
* Certification Committee–expert panel member
* Examination Process (testing and question writing)

To the Pedorthic Association of Canada

* Board members
* Director, Government Relations Committee
* Chair, Insurance Committee

Specialized Production Laboratory

Pedorthic Services’ laboratory in Waterloo manufactures custom foot orthoses to our individual specifications and performs footwear modifications. This approach gives us full control over the design and quality of each orthothic device, allowing for specificity and personalization. We also have capacity for on-site modifications at all clinic sites, ensuring very timely service and further customization as needed.