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 your 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 do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are not only current but also always attempt to exceed each agencies’ recommendations. 

Patient Protocols:

You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example: 

  • Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office.
  • We do request that you fill out all New Patient forms online on our website and submit them electronically. We will limit the amount of paperwork in the office.
  • We will require you to wait in the parking lot or in your car and call us from there when you arrive. Once we are ready for you, we will call you in. Please be patient with us.
  • Please come with a face covering or a mouth mask of some kind in accordance with the CDC guidelines. 
  • We will take your temperature and oxygen level using a pulse oximeter in accordance with our safety measures for our staff and all the patients that will be coming in.
  • Only patients who have an appointment will be allowed inside the office. For minors, only one guardian will be allowed.  
  • We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.
  • You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.  
  • 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. 
  • If you or anyone in your household feels unwell, please reschedule your appointment. This is out of abundance of caution for the safety of our staff and other patients. For this reason, we will also be waiving our last minute cancellation fee.
  • We kindly request you to please inform our office if you develop any symptoms of COVID-19 within 14 days following your appointment.

Protocols for our Dental Team:

  • All of our doctors and team members will be screened everyday for temperature and any other COVID related symptoms. Anyone identified with signs of potential illness will be sent home immediately for their safety and the safety of other team members and our patients.
  • No visitors ( vendors or accompanying any patient or staff ) are allowed to ensure the safety of our staff and patients.
  • We will maintain social distancing standards of 6 feet apart as much as possible, except when necessary to complete an exam or procedure.

Enhanced Technologies Implemented for Patient Safety During Coronavirus:

  • Advanced PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) including new N-95 filtration masks, face shields and head covers.
  • Enhanced Air Filtration system in each treatment room and reception area.
  • Infrared temperature scanner for us and our patients prior to appointment.
  • New enhanced and more efficient intraoral suction system.
  • Powerful extraoral suction to reduce and capture maximum aerosols generated.
  • Pre-procedural rinse for you to use.

We are happy to answer any questions you may have regarding our disinfection and sterilization protocols and look forward to making every visit to our office safe, comfortable, and effective.