Protocols

Protocols for Ensuring Patient Safety at Our Dental Clinic in Bowie

At our dental clinic in Bowie, we prioritize the safety of our patients and staff. Following the reopening after the COVID-19 shutdown, we have implemented specific guidelines and procedures to ensure a safe environment for everyone. Here are the steps we have adopted before, during, and after dental care to maintain a high standard of safety.

Preparing for Dental Care

1. Dentist in Bowie Prioritizes Health: Our dentists will not report to work if they experience influenza-like illness symptoms. They will also undergo free COVID-19 testing.
2. Daily Self-Monitoring: All dental health care personnel (DHCP) will remain vigilant about respiratory symptoms and check their temperature twice a day using non-contact thermometers. Employees with a temperature above 100 degrees will not work.
3. Prompt Reporting: If an employee develops a fever or respiratory symptoms, they will contact the office manager to determine whether medical evaluation is necessary. If we suspect a patient has COVID-19, we will notify the local or state health department.
4. PPE Inventory Check: Dental assistants will conduct a daily inventory check of available personal protective equipment (PPE) supplies, ensuring an adequate stock of surgical masks, gowns, gloves, and face shields.
5. Enhanced Hygiene Practices: To minimize the risk of contamination, we will actively remove magazines, reading materials, toys, and other objects that cannot be easily disinfected. Additionally, we will place signage in the dental office to educate patients on respiratory hygiene and social distancing recommendations.

Prioritizing Safety During Appointments

1. Appointment Scheduling: We will schedule appointments with sufficient gaps to minimize contact between patients. We will only allow one patient in the waiting room at a time.
2. Screening and Education: When scheduling appointments, we will inform patients about our new safety policies over the phone. We will inquire about any symptoms such as fever, loss of smell or taste, cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat.
3. Safe Supply Handling: We will accept all supply deliveries outside the practice and sanitize them before bringing them in. This applies to package carriers and dental suppliers.
4. Urgent Patient Care: Patients without fever or mild symptoms can receive dental care with appropriate protocols. We will see patients with a fever related to a dental diagnosis but no other signs of COVID-19 infection. In such cases, we will prescribe antibiotics and schedule a follow-up appointment.
5. Controlled Hygiene Procedures: Once the state of emergency is lifted, we will actively limit the number of hygiene patients to five per day, scheduling one patient every 90 minutes. Additionally, we will assign a dental assistant to provide high-volume suction for the hygienist, effectively reducing aerosol spray.

Ensuring Safety during Patient Arrival

1. Pre-Appointment Check-In: Patients or their parent/guardian will fill out the check-in form either from their car or upon arrival at the office using front office kiosks. This includes the No Harm form and COVID-19 declaration.
2. Waiting in the Car: Patients and their parent/guardian will wait in the car until the office calls them in.
3. Patient Escort: If the patient is a minor, has special needs, or is elderly, their parent/guardian will accompany them to the office door.
4. Personal Protective Equipment: Patients will be provided with protective gear, including masks and gloves, before entering the office.
5. Health Assessment: We will take the temperature of every patient and ask them about symptoms such as fever, loss of smell or taste, cough, shortness of breath, or sore throat.
6. Stringent Infection Control: Our DHCP will ensure a constant supply of infection control supplies, such as alcohol-based hand rub, tissues, and no-touch receptacles. We will regularly disinfect all commonly touched areas.

ADA Interim Mask and Face Shield Guidelines

Maintaining Safety Protocols During Dental Care

1. Use of Face Shields: During all dental treatments, including hygiene and routine examinations, dental professionals will utilize dental face shields. These shields protect the eyes, nose, and mouth from splashing or spattering of blood or other body fluids, and individuals can disinfect them for reuse.
2. Full PPE Usage: Our DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) will wear N95 masks and full PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) gear, which we can reuse. This ensures protection for patients by minimizing the risk of infection transmission.
3. Preprocedural Mouth Rinse: To mitigate the risk of transmission, we will use a 1.5% hydrogen peroxide or 0.2% povidone mouth rinse before dental procedures. These solutions may help in reducing the vulnerability of SARS-CoV-2.
4. Minimizing Aerosol Production: We will prioritize the use of hand instrumentation over procedures that generate aerosol. We will use rubber dams to minimize aerosol or spatter during aerosol-producing procedures.
5. High-Volume Evacuators: DHCP will utilize high-volume evacuators whenever possible. It’s important to be aware of potential backflow when using saliva ejectors, which could lead to cross-contamination.

Maintaining Safety Protocols for Hygiene Procedures

1. Hygiene Gowns: When treating patients, hygienists will wear gowns. However, individuals should not wear these gowns in common areas.
2. Gown Reuse: When working on the same patient, healthcare professionals can reuse gowns, but they must change them when moving between operatories.
3. Proper Disposal: We will discard gowns after completing treatments and procedures.

Ensuring Safety After Dental Care

1. Patient Handoff: Upon completion of the dental service, the patient’s guardian/parent will be notified by phone to come to the front door. Patients will use hand sanitizer before leaving the office.
2. Payment and Follow-Up: We will collect payment before the patient leaves the office if it is required. At that time, we will also schedule a follow-up appointment.
3. Disposal of Protective Equipment: Patients will discard all protective equipment in the designated area.

End-of-Day Procedures

1. Proper Garment Removal: Before removing gloves, disposable lab coats should be removed.
2. Change of Clothing: Staff members may bring a change of clothing to store in a plastic bag for laundering at home.
3. Thorough Handwashing: Staff members will wash their hands with soap and water for at least 45 seconds.
4. Surface Disinfection: After each visit, we will wipe down all areas the patient has come into contact with using Cavicide or an equivalent surface disinfectant.
5. Follow-Up Appointments: If a follow-up appointment was not scheduled, we will assist patients in making an appointment over the phone while they are still in their car.

Our dental clinic in Bowie is committed to providing a safe and secure environment for all patients and staff members by implementing these protocols. Your well-being is our priority.

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