In this episode of Dean’s Chat, Drs. Jeffrey Jensen and Johanna Richey welcome Dr. Karen Langone, a longtime leader in podiatric medicine, past president of the American Association for Women Podiatrists, former leader/past president within the American Association of Podiatric Sports Medicine, and active advocate through the New York State Podiatric Medical Association and APMA. Karen shares her journey into professional leadership, explaining how mentors and role models encouraged her to become involved and how years of volunteering ultimately led to opportunities to influence the profession at the state and national levels. She emphasizes the importance of giving back and recognizing that meaningful leadership often begins by simply raising your hand and doing the work.
A passionate biomechanics and sports medicine specialist, Karen discusses her fascination with human movement and how that interest has evolved throughout her career. She reflects on the evolution of biomechanics from traditional approaches toward tissue stress theory and emphasizes the value of continually learning from colleagues and sharing the small clinical pearls that can improve patient care. Her clinical interests have expanded beyond sports medicine to include falls prevention, osteopenia, osteoporosis, and helping patients with neurologic conditions such as Parkinson’s disease maintain mobility and independence. She highlights the profound role podiatrists can play in preventing falls and preserving function throughout a patient’s lifetime.
Karen also reflects on her involvement in the development of the Special Olympics Fit Feet program, describing the opportunity to provide biomechanical assessment, gait analysis, and foot care to athletes while helping establish a foundation for a program that continues to benefit patients today. The discussion explores the importance of serving vulnerable populations and the responsibility healthcare professionals have to address unmet needs.
The conversation also examines the evolution of women in podiatric leadership. Karen shares her experiences as one of the early women involved in leadership within sports medicine and discusses how mentorship, representation, and strong female role models have helped create greater opportunities for women throughout the profession. She emphasizes that leadership is not about competing with others—excellence is not a zero-sum game—and that professionals can disagree respectfully, learn from different perspectives, and ultimately work together for the greater good.
Finally, Karen discusses the changing landscape of podiatric practice and the evolving educational needs of today’s DPMs including some highlights of the upcoming National Conference in Nashville Tennessee, including sessions on leadership, employment models, contracts, RVUs, hospital opportunities, and work-life alignment. Her message to students considering podiatry is simple and powerful: podiatrists have the opportunity to build meaningful, long-term relationships with patients while helping them maintain the mobility that allows them to live their lives. This episode is a compelling conversation about leadership, service, biomechanics, mentorship, advocacy, and the many ways podiatrists can make a lasting difference.