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What is our dental office doing to protect patients and staff from COVID-19?

What is our dental office doing to protect patients and staff from COVID-19?

Even before the pandemic, dental offices were required to maintain pretty strict hygiene practices. All dental practices already follow strict government standards for cleaning and sanitizing everything with TGA-approved disinfectants specially designed for use in a healthcare setting to kill viruses, bacteria, and other pathogens. Additionally, it has long been standard protocol for our entire dental care team to wear protective gear, including gloves, surgical masks, and goggles for eye protection to minimize the risk of transmitting germs from one patient to another.

These standards are in practice every day, regardless of whether there’s a known outbreak of an infectious disease. 

Now, due to COVID-19, there are additional safety precautions in place, many of them recommended by the Australian Government Department of Health and the Australian Dental Association.  We are continuing to enforce social distancing between all individuals in the office—patients and staff—when not wearing personal protective equipment, and we routinely disinfect common surfaces in lobbies or waiting rooms, including doorknobs, countertops, and pens.

Chairs are placed six feet apart in the waiting room and depending on space inside you may be asked to wait in your car upon arrival. We have removed all the usual magazines, toys, etc in waiting rooms, in their place you will find tissues, hand sanitizer, and extra trashcans.

Staff are also taking many extra precautions, including having illness screenings and daily temperature checks, and being required to change from their street clothes and shoes to scrubs (or vice-versa) before entering or exiting the practice. Dentists, hygienists, and assistants will also wear more robust [PPE] equipment for higher-risk procedures that create more aerosols.

Our screening isn’t limited to staff. Due to the fact that dental workers are more at risk of infection than patients, it is important to make sure that anyone getting treatment is infection-free. You may be asked to fill out a questionnaire the day before you come in and also when you arrive at the office. Everything in place is to minimize the risk of infection for both yourself and our staff.

Finally, the dental procedure itself may look a little different.  Under Level 3 restrictions we’re also using a pre-procedural mouthwash and a dental dam for any procedures generating aerosols.

So, when should you schedule your next dental appointment?

First and foremost, if you're experiencing any type of dental emergency—swelling, uncontrolled bleeding, pain, trauma from an accident, or if you have a dental concern related to an underlying condition (chemotherapy, uncontrolled diabetes, etc.)—it's important to see your dentist as soon as possible.

In the meantime we encourage you to continue with your usual dental hygiene routine by brushing and flossing twice a day. We look forward to seeing you again soon.