To anyone wondering whether it’s safe to visit a dentist amid this pandemic? My answer will be an Absolute yes!! As dental practices across the globe are resuming the non-emergency dental services, many patients are still in doubt regarding a normal visit to a dentist. I believe it was safe before, but you could say it’s even safer now because of some of the additional protocols. All of the extra things that we’re doing are just augmenting the procedures that we already had in place. Yes, the whole thing about “Aerosols and spread of virus” that has been doing rounds is true. But dentists have been dealing with this since centuries and have successfully protected themselves and their patients from pathogens that are more dangerous than Covid-19! DENTAL OFFICES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN SQUEAKY CLEAN! Dental offices are one of the safest places you can ever visit in terms of cleanliness and disinfection. And this is not because of some nasty virus that has made everyone wash their hands 20 times a day! Dental offices have always been very strict over infection control protocols. Even before Covid-19 outbreak, dental treatment rooms were cleaned with bactericidal and virucidal liquids before and after each patient. All the instruments are sterilized using heat before each patient and washed and sterilized again after each use. We have been using personal protective equipments including masks, gloves, protective eyewear and aprons since as long as 80s! We cover our dental chair and all other things that we touch during procedure in disposable plastic wraps and we change them after every patient. And all these has been a part of our daily routine far before the world understood the importance of masks and hand sanitization! WHAT IS YOUR DENTIST DOING TO ENSURE YOUR SAFETY DURING THIS PANDEMIC? As soon as the news of the pandemic came in, there has been a continuous input of safety precautions for dental practices by Centre For Disease Control And Prevention and the respective Dental associations. These guidelines have been regularly updated on the basis of science and facts and have been strictly implemented throughout dental practices across the globe. Patient safety has always been our first priority and following are the additional measures that we are taking to protect our patients and staff:
- Social distancing.
- Covid-19 screening before each patient visit which includes temperature screenings.
- Less number of appointments at a time.
- Vigorous sanitization protocols before, during and after procedures. ( including door knobs, countertops and even pens!!)
- Increased PPE for staff and patients.
- Limiting aerosol generating procedures.
- Mouth rinse before treatment to reduce any pathogens in the saliva.
- UV light sterilization.
- Air purification devices.
- Extra-oral suctions.
- Aerosol removal devices and much more!
