A nail doctor in Sydney is giving advice on getting your nails checked after a young girl died after falling from a bridge at a Melbourne golf course.
Key points:Dr Ian Goodman says it is important to check your nails at least twice a yearDr Goodman has a patient who fell from the Bridge of Goodmans Dr Goodman said it is “important to get these nails checked at least every two to three months” and “if the nail is a bit brittle, take it out and see a nail specialist”Dr Goodmans patients include a 14-year-old girl who fell into the bridge, and a woman who fell about 25 metres from the bridge while out at the golf course in July.
She died in hospital.
“A young girl fell from a carpark, and she was just in her early 20s and I’ve got a patient that fell from that bridge,” Dr Goodmans said.
“So, obviously I have to check all my patients, and I always tell my patients to go and get their nails checked because it’s the one thing you need to check.”
The GP said if a nail had “some sort of brittle nature” or had been cut, it could be a sign of “bad arthritis”.
Dr Goodham said he and his patient were both aware of the risks of falls from bridges, but the fact that he and the girl were in their 20s was not enough reason to rush to get them checked.
“They’re probably older than their 20 years, so I can’t go and go to the GP and say ‘well, if you’ve got some sort of arthritis, get your nail checked’.
I’m not going to get a referral for that,” Dr Fairman said.”[But] it’s very important to have your nails check at least once a year.”
Dr Goodeman said he had treated a patient with osteoarthritis, who fell onto the bridge.
“The next thing I know, I’m going to see him, and he’s like ‘you’re getting it checked, I’ve been seeing a nail doctor’.”
So I just do a little bit of research and the last thing I do is say ‘this is the one I’m seeing’.
“He’s like, ‘yeah, I just had to go get a check’.”
Dr Goodmen said he would have seen the girl’s death if he had been the one to do the check himself.
“You know, if somebody’s in a position where they’re just trying to get through life without breaking their arm, then yeah, I’ll be a bit more cautious about getting them checked,” he said.
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