COVID - 19 Update - Part IV
It is important to maintain dental visits, even during a pandemic.
Oral health is an important part of overall health.
Prevention and treatment of dental disease is important.
Routine appointments allow us to check for a number of health conditions. Some conditions, like tooth decay, can be more difficult, painful and expensive to treat if not caught early.
Health and safety is first and foremost.
We understand you are concerned about your health and safety. We are too! As doctors of oral health, that is always our top priority. We are taking a number of new precautions to protect you in accordance with the American Dental Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The good news is, these precautions are working.
An October 2020 report published in The Journal of the American Dental Association found that 99 percent of dentists were using enhanced infection control procedures such as screening protocols and enhanced disinfection practices when treating patients.
Our dental team is also carefully monitoring our own health through daily screenings. Our staff takes their temperature to make sure no one has a fever, and we answer health-related questions each day to ensure no one is experiencing any COVID-19 symptoms.
Researchers from the ADA Science and Research Institute and the ADA Health Policy Institute are continuing to collect infection rate data among dentists and have added dental hygienists to the research as well. The preliminary data suggest the monthly incidence rate among dentists has remained below one percent.
How are we working to limit the spread of COVID-19?
Dentists were infection control experts before the pandemic, and we have strengthened already-strict infection control procedures in accordance with American Dental Association and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidance to help limit the spread of COVID-19. We continue to have staff meetings to review any new recommendations and implement them accordingly.
For added safety, our reception area now has plexiglass installed on both sides. A new central HEPA grade air filtration system was installed in May that catches particles down to 0.1 microns in size. We have also added another layer of protection with the installation of a UV air purifier in August.
Before your appointment, we are taking many precautions to provide safe dental care.
Our office staff may call and ask some questions about your current health status before your visit. They will repeat these questions when you arrive to make sure nothing has changed.
You will have your temperature taken prior to any procedure.
You will be asked to bring and wear your own masks when you arrive at our office. If you do not have a mask, one will be provided.
You may be asked to limit the number of people you bring to the appointment. That could mean leaving your children at home under proper supervision or allowing your older children to go into the office alone while you wait outside in your vehicle.
We will have hand sanitizer available for you to use.
We will ask you to use a pre-procedural mouth rinse.
During your visit, you can expect the following:
You may be asked to wait outside until the dental team is ready to see you. This is to reduce the number of people in the office and the time you are around other people.
Inside the office, you may notice things like toys and magazines — the things many people tend to touch — have been removed.
Our staff is regularly wiping down items patients often touch like pens, clipboards or furniture.
Our dental team, including me, may be using different protective equipment than you’ve seen at previous appointments, such as N95 masks, face shields, and gowns. Don’t worry, the same smiling faces are still there underneath!
After every visit:
Our team will thoroughly clean the areas where all patients have been, using disinfectants that are effective against the virus that causes COVD-19.
If you need an accommodation due to disability related to our safety protocols, including the requirement to wear masks or cloth face coverings, please contact our office as soon as possible, prior to your appointment.
