February 28, 2025
Receiving treatment from Central Health’s Podiatry Unit, one patient was able to walk for the first time in two years
The hole in Danielle’s left foot was small at first. Then over time, two years in fact, it became so large that a doctor had to point out that it was four inches deep.
How did it come to this?
Maybe it was because it was so damaged, Danielle could no longer feel pain in her foot. Maybe it was because after she was referred to Central Health podiatrist Dr. Vanatius Babila-Tita, affectionately called “Dr. Tita,” he told her she had this thing called Charcot Arthropathy, a diagnosis usually caused by diabetes.
Danielle first developed drop foot, making it impossible for her to lift the front of her foot. Then the 36-year-old developed a blister that became a diabetic ulcer. Eventually, that small hole turned into a big one.
By then, Danielle had developed a condition called neuropathy, which prevented her from feeling anything in her foot.
Dr. Vanatius Babila-Tita (left) and his patient Danielle (right)
Neuropathy happens when the nerves around extremities, usually the feet and hands, become damaged because of high blood sugar, Dr. Tita said.
“When I came into the visit, (Dr. Tita) took a look at my foot and said, ‘Let’s do this.’”
So, Danielle was living life as best she could, getting by on a knee scooter around her house. Just to use the bathroom? To move around the kitchen?
Life was just so hard.
Deep down, she knew something had to happen. Two years had gone by and nothing helped.
“I was unable to do a lot,” she said. “I couldn’t walk normally.”
Then came that lifeline, that meeting with Dr. Tita. This was all possible because Danielle was enrolled in the Medical Access Program (MAP), Central Health’s health coverage program designed to help residents of Travis County have access to quality health care.
“When I came into the visit, (Dr. Tita) took a look at my foot and said, ‘Let’s do this,’” Danielle remembered.
Better yet, Dr. Tita’s minimally-invasive plan was aimed at healing the wound left in her foot from the ulcer, giving her a chance to experience life again.
He initiated a procedure that would shave “part of the bone out and kind of cut out that ulcer and close the wound to give her a chance to heal,” he said.
A couple months went by. Danielle could feel again.
The solution gave Danielle an experience she wished for – life undeterred.
“Within two months, I was back to normal,” she said. “My foot was starting to heal.”
It ultimately proved to her that Central Health was an organization she could count on.
“I am once again thankful for having this opportunity to be able to improve my life,” she said.
Watch full journey
MAP provides access to health care services for more than 50,000 Travis County residents. If you live in Travis County and are uninsured you might be eligible. Visit https://www.centralhealth.net/map/ or call 512.978.8130 to apply.