At the top of the list of riskiest jobs in this time of pandemic are general dentists, dental assistants, and dental hygienists. Dentistry cannot be conducted without close contact with patients, a patient’s mouth, a patient’s saliva, a patient’s breath, etc. Social distancing between a patient and dental healthcare workers is impossible.
Although strict safety measures have always been required in dental clinics for the safety of both the patients and the dental staff, even more precautions are now being practiced to protect everyone from the spread of SARS-CoV-2 via aerosols. Many dental procedures create aerosols, and viruses can travel, not only via droplets, but also via these smaller particles. Aerosols may stay in the air longer than droplets and may be carried by air movements. Since Covid-19 is still very new and not much is known with certainty about it, except that most people have no immunity against it and there is no known reliable treatment nor vaccine, as much as possible is being done to avoid transmission within the dental setting.
Some of the additional safety measures you might see at the dental clinic follow:
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT:
The dental staff now wears enhanced PPE to protect against possible infection from a positive patient. This includes goggles, masks/respirators, face shields, headcaps, coveralls, isolation gowns, double gloves, shoe covers. They may appear more like astronauts than healthcare workers.
Air Environmental Infection Control: Exhaust fans create negative pressure to ensure any infectious particles do not go out through the doorway to high traffic areas, keeping the dental clinic safer by isolating the possibly contaminated area. Air purifiers are also used inside the negative pressure isolation rooms to clean the air of odors, dust, allergens, fungus spores, bacteria, and viruses.
Appointment scheduling: Patients are required to set an appointment to visit the clinic. This allows for pre-screening the people who enter the clinic. This also protects patients from unnecessary contact with other patients and their companions. And it allows for ample time to clean and disinfect the clinic between patients.
To Set an Appointment with Dente’ Care Center:
- Request an appointment date, click the link: Set An Appointment – Dente’ Care Center.
- Your date will confirmed by the dental clinic staff
- You will be contacted via email or phone
- You may also contact Dente’ Care Center via Facebook Page – Dente Care Center
Cleaning and Disinfection: Because aerosols may travel through and linger in the air, more emphasis is being taken in disinfecting all surfaces of the clinic by thorough spraying, fogging, and UV light treatments.
Dente’ Care Center is fully equipped to provide dental services, Read More here.