Narelle Swain-Smith BHSc (Pod)
I have acquired over three years of podiatry-based clinical experience at the Auckland University of Technology (AUT) Interprofessional Health Clinic. I have gained knowledge of disorders and injuries of the toes, foot, ankle, and lower extremities. I had taken part in an AUT integrated health programme for six weeks called the ‘Interprofessional Diabetes Programme’. We collaborated with other student health professionals and patients with diabetes to provide integrated care, optimising their lifestyle choices to improve their health outcomes. I attended OXFAM in March 2019, which provided me with the experience of giving education and treatment (strapping, offloading hot spots and adapting to the conditions) to assist participants in finishing the 100km trail. I had my clinical placements at Waitakere Foot and at the Waitemata DHB. I learned so much at both placements.
I am of Maori descent, from the tribes Te Rarawa, Te Aupouri and Nga Puhi. I am very committed to seeing my community flourish. Growing up in both Northland (Pawarenga) and West Auckland (Waitakere), I have been allowed to get to know people of various cultures and socio-economic backgrounds. I describe myself as a confident, kind and approachable person. I have learnt to be proficient in organising and prioritising my busy schedule. I have a willingness to learn, I am resilient, and I have excellent problem-solving skills.
If you’ve had enough with thickened or crumbly nails sticking out of your sandals or shoes that you regularly try to hide or paint over, we’ve got the perfect solution. Using specialised podiatric equipment, we’re actually able to reduce the nail thickness across the entire nail and leave a smooth and clean surface.
This not only improves the look of your nails, but the reduction in thickness also reduces any painful pressure from the nail rubbing against the top of the toe box of the shoe.
There are multiple causes that can lead to thickened toenails such as poor circulation, nail fungus, trauma/injury and some skin conditions that affect the toenails. We’ll chat about your cause and how to control this problem in the future.
Don’t worry, there’ll be no scrubber brush here that will irritate your skin and has likely been used on hundreds of other patients this week like they have in the salons!
We manage heel cracks by removing the hard, overgrown skin around the cracks with a scalpel and sanding the rest down with a medical sanding disc to produce a clean and smooth appearance – and an incredible feeling when you put your feet down.
We’re often shocked at salons that try to ‘scrub’ these cracks away as when you have a heel crack, there is a significant chance of cracking the healthy, viable skin in the fissures and causing them to bleed – not to mention a significant risk of infection.
Once the cracks are reduced, they are much easier to maintain with regular moisturising – plus we’ll fill you in on other tips and tricks to stop them from coming back.
You can learn more about cracked heels 
Having a fungal nail infection is one thing, but having it significantly affect the appearance of your nail, causing white/yellow discolouration, brittleness and/or thickness is another ball game.
We not only offer treatments for fungal nail infections and educate you on how to get rid of them and keep them gone (and from spreading to your family), but reduce any thickness and work to optimise the appearance of your nails right there in the appointment.
We often have patients remarking about the significantly improved appearance – and feeling much more confident about their feet and wearing those sandals!
If you’re unsure if you have a fungal nail infection – don’t worry! We’re able to test and confirm the presence of fungus in just 5 minutes and with 99{c933a965fedc32ff1f635f7c60442532dc6a14782ea396677a067bd80800fe82} accuracy.
You can learn more about fungal nail infections 
Broken toenails may be frustrating and not look great, but they can also be very painful and carry the risk of an edge catching on a sock and pulling on the nail or breaking it further. Ouch!
This is why we repair any breaks or cracks you have during your appointment too. We use a clear resin that creates a hard, permanent seal over the nail that is barely noticeable. Because it’s set with a UV light, there’s no drying time either!
If you’ve got thick, overgrown cuticles – or are just unhappy with their appearance, we’ll safely and effectively remove them without pushing them back and damaging the healthy, surrounding skin.
We use a thin burr to precisely remove and smooth the nail base and have you looking great and ready to get your polish on!
Do you have hard patches of skin around your nails, toes and feet?
Does your skin feel rough, dry or have that white, blistery appearance?
Don’t worry, we can take care of all of that during your appointment. We start by using a surgical scalpel to remove any excess hard skin (callus) and any corn on your feet or down the sides of the nails. This is very safe and completely painless as we are simply removing hard, dead skin, and not touching the healthy skin.
We then use a fast-rotating sanding disk to remove the areas of rough or dry skin, and smooth the areas where your callus used to be. Again, this is completely painless – though some find it a bit ticklish!
Because hard or dry skin doesn’t develop for no reason, we also chat about the causes and how to prevent them so you don’t have to repeatedly suffer from this problem!
You can learn more about callus 