Covid-19 Protocols

Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to you and your health and safety. Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

We have implemented the following changes for dental appointments. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff:

	Virtual Waiting Room Please call when you arrive in the parking lot and remain in your vehicle until we are able to assess your temperature. If your temperature is at or above 100.4° F,  we will reschedule your appointment as a precaution. If a family member is accompanying you, we will kindly ask that they stay in the car. However, all minors are accompanied by one parent/Guardian. As a result, you are able to minimize contact with others, bypass the reception area, and go directly to your treatment room.
	Pre-Screening of Every Patient Our staff will ask you some pre-screening questions when we confirm your appointment and again when you arrive on the premises. You will receive the link to the screening form through email or text. Please fill out and submit the form the day before your appointment.
	Expanded Patient Appointments Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment. We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.
	No Patient Gloves Allowed Minimizing cross-contamination is an important part of our plan. We will ask you to dispose of any outside gloves before you enter. You will be asked to wear a mask that we will provide for you, when you enter the building.
	Hospital-Grade Hand Sanitizing Station We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in each operatory room and other places in the office for you to use as needed.
	Anti-Microbial Rinse Before sitting on the dental chair you will be asked to use an oral pre-rinse for at least 30 seconds.
	Daily Health Checks of Our Team The staff will have their temperature checked each morning and they will be asked the same screening questions we ask our patients at the beginning of each work day .
	N95 & ASTM Level 3 Masks The beautiful smiles of our clinical team – dentists, hygienists, and assistants – will be protected behind double-masking at all times.
	Face Shields Two masks are not enough. Our clinical team will also protect you and themselves through the use of FDA Approved PET face shields.
	Disposable, Protective Coats & Hats When appropriate, our team will utilize another layer of protection, hair cover and double gloves to minimize the spread or absorption of airborne particles.
	Shoe Coverings From head to toe, we are doing everything possible to stop the absorption and spread of dangerous particles. This includes covering our shoes
	HEPA Air Filtration Our air has never been cleaner. Each operatory room is equipped with a High level 4 stage HEPA filter, UV-C light air purifiers that kill bacteria, mold and viruses.
	Advanced Aerosol Reduction Tools Special equipments such as Rubberdam, Isolite and HVE system will be utilized to limit aerosols. Even though we are using different equipment that helps with reducing the aerosols, each operatory room won’t be used for 3 hours after finishing a procedure. Our staff will disinfect the room once after the procedure is done and once again after the 3 hours has passed.
	CDC-Approved Instrument Sterilization This is standard procedure at all times, and nothing has changed. Anything that goes near your mouth is heat and pressure cleaned between every use
	Cleaning After Every Appointment We are super clean as we thoroughly wipe, sanitize, and disinfect all instruments, equipment and surfaces in each operatory after every patient.
	Deep Cleaning Every Evening Along with cleaning and sanitizing during the day, we take things to another level at night with a thorough top-to-bottom scrub down.
	Advanced Staff Training Each member of our team has completed additional awareness and prevention programs to enhance their knowledge and preparedness.
	No Magazines or Activities Our waiting room will no longer have magazines, informational pamphlets, coffee station, water bottles and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
	Teledentistry Some consultations and follow-up visits can be handled via our secure, patient communication portal. It is a cool, ultra-safe, and efficient extension of our office.

We understand this pandemic has caused a great deal of pain and suffering and we hope to be part of the healing process. We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice.

Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends.