Website care and hosting
Podiatry website maintenance and hosting, for the site nobody has touched in years.
Many practice websites were built years ago and left alone. Often the company that built the site is gone or slow to answer, the software is out of date, and nobody is watching it. I’m Jim McDannald, DPM. I practiced podiatry for seven years, and I offer ongoing website care for podiatry practices, with weekly site checks and upkeep.
- Logins
- Who holds the logins to your site and your domain?
- Updates
- When was the software last updated?
- Padlock
- Does every page load with https?
- Forms
- When did someone last test the appointment form?
- Backups
- Is there a recent copy of the site?
01What goes wrong
What happens when a podiatry website is not updated in years?
Usually nothing dramatic. The site slowly stops doing its job, and nobody notices until a patient mentions it.
A website is software, and it needs regular upkeep. Six problems are common on a site that has been left alone.
Out of date software and plugins
Many practice sites run on software with add-ons called plugins. Many updates exist to fix security risks, so a site that skips them for years is easier to break into. Routine updates manage that risk. See CISA on software updates.
An expired security certificate
The certificate behind the padlock in the address bar has an end date. If nobody renews it, the secure connection stops working until someone does.
Broken forms
An appointment request form can stop sending messages without showing an error. The patient believes the request went through, and the office never sees it.
Wrong hours or doctors listed
A doctor who left is still on the About page. Saturday hours you dropped are still posted. The same problem shows up in directory listings.
Slow pages
Oversized photos and old add-ons pile up, and pages take longer to load, most of all on a phone.
No backups
If the site breaks, or the hosting account lapses, there may be no recent copy to restore.
02A checklist for any provider
What should podiatry website support and maintenance cover?
This is a checklist of what good website care should cover. Use it on whoever looks after your site now, and on me. What my own service includes is listed further down this page.
Software updates
The site’s software and add-ons kept current.
- Who applies updates, and how often?
- Is the site checked after each update?
- What happens when an update breaks something?
Backups
A recent copy you can go back to.
- How often is a copy made?
- Where are the copies kept?
- Has anyone ever tested a restore?
Certificate and domain
Renewals that nobody forgets.
- Who renews the security certificate?
- Who renews the domain, and whose name is it in?
- Does every page load with https?
Forms and practice details
Podiatrist website updates that keep the basics right.
- Are forms tested with a real submission?
- Are hours, doctors and services current?
- How do you ask for a change, and how long does it take?
Monitoring, speed and security
Someone notices a problem before a patient does.
- Is anyone alerted when the site goes down?
- Is page speed checked on a phone?
- Is the site scanned for security problems?
Hosting, access and ownership
Clear answers about where the site lives.
- Where is the site hosted, and who pays for it?
- Do you have your own admin login?
- Can you move the site if you change providers?
03Security and HIPAA
Is my podiatry website secure, and when does HIPAA apply to it?
Two questions come up most: the padlock, and HIPAA compliant website hosting.
This is general information, not legal advice. I checked the sources linked on this page in November 2026. Ask your attorney or compliance adviser about your own site.
What the padlock and https mean
When your web address starts with https, the connection between a visitor and your site is encrypted. Browsers show a symbol beside the address, often called the padlock. It depends on a security certificate, which many people call SSL.
Why a practice site should have it
Chrome labels a site without a private connection as Not secure, and says someone may be able to view or change what a visitor sends. A patient filling in a form should not see that label. Read Chrome’s explanation.
When HIPAA applies to a website
HIPAA protects health information that identifies a patient and is held or sent by a covered practice or its vendors. A page that describes bunion surgery holds none. An appointment or contact form where a patient types a name and a foot problem can collect it. Read the HHS summary of the Privacy Rule.
Vendors and the HIPAA compliant label
HHS says a vendor that creates, receives, maintains or transmits electronic patient health information for a practice is a business associate, and the practice must have a business associate agreement with it. That includes a cloud service provider, even one that stores the information encrypted and holds no key. HHS also says it does not endorse, certify or recommend specific technology or products. So ask a host what its label means, and ask for the agreement. HHS on business associates and HHS on cloud services.
04What I do
Podiatrist website management: who looks after your site?
If the honest answer today is nobody, that is common, and it can be fixed. Here is what my website care service includes.
Weekly updates and backups
I check your site every week and apply WordPress, theme and plugin updates. I keep regular backups, so there is a recent copy to restore.
Monitoring and testing
I watch for downtime and security problems, check page speed, and test your forms and booking links.
Small changes and renewals
Send me changes to hours, staff or insurance lists and I make them. I also keep an eye on your domain and security certificate renewals.
You deal with me directly
I work one-on-one with practice owners. There is no account manager in between. When something on the site needs attention, you tell me.
Your hosting, your site
You keep your own hosting account, and I manage the site on it. The practice owns its site, its domain and its content. I also take on sites I did not build.
A podiatrist looking at your site
I’m a surgically trained podiatrist and I now do marketing full time, for podiatry practices. If your site is past the point of upkeep, a rebuild may be the better choice.
Podiatry website designBring the checklist above and ask me each question about your own site.
05Results from podiatry practices
What results have podiatry practices seen with Jim?
These results come from broader marketing work, not from website care alone.
of patients at Gateley Podiatry told Dr. Gateley they found the practice on Google or Google Reviews.
Read the Gateley Podiatry case studymore new patient visits at Wisconsin Foot Center, after work on local SEO, Google Ads and patient reviews.
Read the Wisconsin Foot Center case studyResults differ from practice to practice and from town to town.
“Within a couple of months of Jim’s planning and implementing a strategy to improve our website and online presence, 50% or more of our patients tell me they found us via Google or Google Reviews.”
Gateley Podiatry, Topeka, KS
06Questions
Questions about podiatry website hosting and maintenance
- Written by
- Jim McDannald, DPM
- Background
- Seven years in podiatry practice, now marketing full time
- Sources checked
- November 2026
- First step
- Free Practice Visibility Scan
Who maintains my podiatry website?
Often nobody, once the company that built it has moved on. Someone should hold the logins, apply updates, renew the certificate and domain, test the forms and keep backups. Jim McDannald, DPM, offers ongoing website care for podiatry practices, with weekly updates, backups, monitoring and form tests.
Does Jim host my podiatry website?
No. You keep your own hosting account, and Jim manages the site on it. The practice owns its site, its domain and its content. Jim also looks after sites he did not build.
Is my podiatry website secure?
A quick first check is whether every page loads with https. After that, ask when the software was last updated, whether backups exist and who is watching the site. If nobody can answer, treat the site as unchecked, not as safe.
My podiatry website has not been updated in years. What should I do?
Start by finding out who holds the logins to the site, the hosting account and the domain. Then have the software, the certificate, the forms and the listed hours and doctors checked. Some older sites can be brought up to date, and others are better rebuilt. See podiatry website design.
Do I need SSL for my podiatry website?
Yes. With https, the connection between a visitor and the site is encrypted, and Chrome labels a site without a private connection as Not secure. A practice site with an appointment or contact form should load with https on every page.
Is there HIPAA compliant website hosting for a podiatry practice?
HHS says it does not endorse, certify or recommend specific technology or products, so the label does not come from HHS. What HHS does require is a business associate agreement with any vendor that creates, receives, maintains or transmits electronic patient health information for the practice. This is general information, not legal advice. See the HHS guidance on cloud services.
What does podiatry website maintenance include?
It should cover software updates, backups, certificate and domain renewals, form testing, changes to hours, doctors and services, and someone watching for problems. The checklist on this page lists the questions to ask any provider.
Does the practice still own the website if Jim looks after it?
Yes. The practice owns its site, its domain and its content.
07Related services
Related services for your website
From the blog: 7 steps to a better podiatry clinic website.
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