Protecting You (Our Patients) From Coronavirus
Updated: Oct 6, 2020
If I close my eyes, I can conjure up a very vivid memory of my childhood dentist. I see a pale green, belt-driven chunk of dental equipment as big as my refrigerator with a tooth-polishing unit to my left. In front of me and nearly upside down, I see a very light blue pair of eyes. He was a nice guy. It’s as vivid as if it were yesterday; no mask, no gloves, no glasses. That was the norm back then.
By the time I was in dental school, almost 20 years later, there were new infections floating around. Dental professionals had come to understand that you couldn’t look at someone and tell if they were infected. Let me say that a different way. Anyone in front of us could be infected with what was a deadly, incurable disease. Dentistry’s response: treat every patient like they’ve got the most feared disease out there. That’s what we’ve been doing ever since. Believe me when I say, none of us want to get sick either!
Have you ever wondered why so much of our rooms are wrapped in paper or plastic? Everything that comes close to a patient gets bombed by disinfectant or steam sterilized. Then, areas most frequently contaminated are wrapped with materials that can be discarded. In light of the Coronavirus, we have spent additional attention on areas outside our treatment spaces.
Throughout the day, we are disinfecting areas of the office such as door knobs, restrooms, faucets and other items that are touched frequently. Between each patient, we are disinfecting technology devices to ensure cleanliness. Appropriate personal protective equipment is worn by all team members. In addition, we have employed HEPA air purifiers throughout the office to ensure the air is scrubbed clean.
Our staff is self monitoring their health and if any of our team members are not feeling well, they are staying home. In addition, if any family members are not feeling well, we have asked team members to stay home as well.
When you have an appointment scheduled, our automated system will send a request to you to answer a questionnaire 2 days prior to your appointment. It's a precaution so we can help track potential issues. And when you arrive at our office, stay in your car and give us a call to let us know you've arrived. By having our patients wait in their cars we are able to effectively manage the number of people coming in and out of our office. Once inside, a member of our staff will screen you again by taking your temperature and asking you the same questions you answered two days prior.
We ask that any patients that have recently traveled to an area that that is heavily impacted from the Coronavirus or that has any question if they have been exposed to any virus to please reschedule their appointments and stay home.
Thank you for helping us as we serve you. We want to take care of you!