'I put my trust in him': Patients speak out about P.E.I. podiatrist who's alleged to have no credentials

Last fall, after months of suffering through major foot pain, 70-year-old Reg Ferguson decided he needed help. 

"I was told [by a friend] about this Dr. John Johnson, that you should go see him, that he's a foot doctor, and what you're going through, he can probably help you," Ferguson said. "I said 'well, if he's a doctor, I'll try it out.'"

Ferguson booked an appointment at Johnson Podiatry, where a sign on the door says "Dr. John Johnson, DP."

According to Ferguson, the 26-year-old Johnson told him he had two toe ulcers and booked him in for weekly treatments that involved laser therapy and a sharp scalpel to remove old skin. 

"I trusted him as being a doctor. I had absolutely no reason to question him, none whatsoever," Ferguson said. "He had other patients, and lots of them. So I'm sure without a doubt they had some trust in him too."

Patty Maiorino feels the same way. 

She experiences foot pain from plantar fasciitis, a tissue inflammation, and first saw Johnson in February. 

He prescribed custom orthotics, which she was fitted for and ordered through the clinic. She paid Johnson $530 for the appointment and the orthotics. 

Maiorino said the orthotics made her pain worse, but Johnson told her to keep trying them.

"We were brought up to trust our doctors, and do what they say. So I just assumed he knew what he was talking about, and I would keep trying," Maiorino said. 

Finally in June, she said Johnson told her staff at the clinic had not scanned the orthotics properly, and ordered her a new pair. She will pick up the new pair this week.

While it is unclear if the treatments Johnson administered to Ferguson and Maiorino met the standard normally expected of a podiatrist, the lack of regulation for podiatry in Prince Edward Island and recent allegations against Johnson have caused them to question the entire system.

"I was in a lot of pain, and I needed somebody to be educated, and trained, and not just by their dad," said Maiorino. 

A week ago, they learned through a CBC News investigation that it appears John Johnson is not a doctor of podiatry.