Broken Bones and Broken Glass No Obstacle for Romney

August 07, 2025

The expression “it was like walking on broken glass,” used to describe unbearable foot pain, rang all too true for Marshall resident Tamara Scott. But the pain from a quarter-inch-long piece of glass lodged in the joint of her big toe came virtually to a stop after a visit with Physician Assistant Miles Romney, of Fitzgibbon Orthopedics and Sports Medicine. It was a much-welcomed visit after a very long weekend, visits to two different hospital emergency rooms and a car ride to Columbia – and back.

Scott, who was observed hobbling down the hallway near the orthopedic clinic, answered, “Oh no, honey, I’m a lot better now!” when asked if she needed any assistance. Her limp showed she was in some pretty severe pain.

Three days earlier, she was walking in her home office where she does custom embroidery. She had granddaughters in town for a visit, and when she heard a cracking noise, she thought she had stepped on a potato chip dropped by one of her grandchildren. Without looking down, she swiped the bottom of her left foot across the top of right foot, expecting to wipe off the broken chip. Instead, when she looked down she saw a piece of glass about the size of a broken toothpick, sticking out the top of her right big toe.

“There was blood everywhere,” she said, recounting the incident. “I went to the ER here on Saturday. The doctor could see it on the X-ray, but he could not find it to get it out. He said it was likely I’d have to have surgery to open up the toe and get to it.”

She was able to get an appointment the following week with Miles Romney, the orthopedic PA who had set a broken wrist she suffered when getting off a motorcycle five weeks previously. She made a special point to note how quick the visit to the Fitzgibbon ER was when she had her broken wrist set.

“It’s been quite the month,” she laughed. “When I went to the Fitz ED I was in and out in an hour. It was so fast, and everyone was terrific. Who knew I’d be back because of this! I just love Miles Romney – he was great with my wrist, and when he walked in the room he said he thought he was seeing me about my wrist!”

However, before her appointment at the orthopedic clinic, the pain in her toe was so bad, she decided to drive herself to Columbia to a hospital emergency department there. She noted that the piece of glass had worked its way through the joint of her toe and was causing pain in the ball of her foot, making it nearly impossible to walk.

“They weren’t able to do anything. They put me in a recliner in the hallway and nobody came to check on me for four and a half hours. I had no idea when I got there they would just put me in a hallway by myself. You would think a big hospital like that could get it out,” Scott said. “They took blood work, took a sonogram, X-rays and poked around inside the wound with a toothpick and couldn’t even touch the glass. While they’re working on me, I’m on the phone with Fitzgibbon Orthopedics.”

During the visit with Physician Assistant Romney, she said the toe was numbed, and she watched on the X-ray as he manipulated tweezers inside the toe joint.

“We could see the glass, he just couldn’t get it. I could hear the tweezers sort of scrape along the glass but they just couldn’t grasp it. Then finally, he got it. I think he was pretty proud of himself, because I do think he was getting ready to take me down to surgery. When they manipulated my foot, the pain was unreal. You could’ve peel me off the ceiling.”

Scott returns for a followup – for both her wrist and the injured toe – this week. But most importantly, the pain is gone, thanks to the persistence and skill shown by Romney in the orthopedic clinic.

“I feel so much better that it’s out,” she said, holding up the clear container holding the glass. “It still hurts, but it’s a good hurt! I’m so happy to have Fitzgibbon right here. They’ve helped me twice in six weeks. Everybody has been very attentive. I’m very happy with them.”   

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