01/27/2026
🦶 Why Medical Foot Care Nurses Do NOT Soak Feet
AFCN Learning Institute | Clinical Education
Foot soaking is still commonly associated with salon pedicures—but in medical foot care, it is not evidence-based practice.
At AFCN Learning Institute, we teach nurses why soaking feet is contraindicated and how dry care supports safer outcomes.
🚫 Why foot care nurses do NOT soak feet:
• Skin maceration & breakdown
Soaking over-softens the skin, increasing the risk of tearing, fissures, and post-treatment breakdown.
• Impaired clinical assessment
Water exposure turns the skin white and swollen, making it difficult to distinguish:
– Viable vs compromised tissue
– Callus vs maceration
– Early wounds, fissures, or infection
Accurate assessment requires dry, intact skin.
• Increased infection risk
Warm, moist environments promote bacterial and fungal growth—especially dangerous for clients with diabetes, vascular disease, or immunocompromise.
• Burn & injury risk
Clients with neuropathy may not feel water temperature, increasing the risk of thermal injury.
• Delayed healing & poorer outcomes
Macerated skin is weaker, more fragile, and slower to heal if injured.
• Outdated, cosmetic-based practice
Soaking originates from salon culture—not modern, medical, evidence-based foot care.
✅ Best practice medical foot care is:
✔ Dry
✔ Precise
✔ Assessment-driven
✔ Preventative
✔ Evidence-based
At AFCN Learning Institute, we train nurses to practice safe, professional, medically sound foot care—not cosmetic routines.
📘 Education matters.
🩺 Assessment matters.
🦶 Dry care protects feet.
