Covid-19 Protocols
Our communities have been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety.
Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. Friendly Smiles Dental offices follow infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new Covid-19 related rulings and guidance that may be issued.
We look forward to answering any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. Thank you for your cooperation and see you soon!
How we protect our dental patients and staff:
- Ask patients to use provided hand sanitizer upon arrival at the office, in the reception area, before and after procedures
- Check patient temperature with a touch-less forehead scan thermometer for fever <100.4°F
- We’ve removed magazines and children’s toys from our waiting areas since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect
- Reduction and separation of chairs in waiting areas
- Management of appointments to allow for reasonable social distancing between patients
- Ask patients to submit patient forms online to reduce waiting times and the number of patients in the reception area
Protective equipment:
Friendly Smiles Dental utilizes ADA recommended masks, goggles, and face shields to protect patients and staff.
Additionally and as a total voluntary measure, Friendly Smiles Dental has installed several extraoral high-velocity chairside suction units. This state of the art equipment with its HEPA filtration is placed right by the patient’s mouth to capture biological aerosol and moisture droplets produced during dental procedures.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDg_dda0qeU&t=29s
Questions we ask when making your appointment and again when you are in the office:
- Do you have a fever or have you felt hot or feverish in the past 14-21 days?
- Are you having shortness of breath or other difficulties breathing?
- Do you have a cough?
- Any other flu-like symptoms, such as gastrointestinal upset, headache, or fatigue?
- Have you experienced a loss of taste or smell recently?
- Are you or have you been in contact with any confirmed COVID-19 positive patients?
- Do you have heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, diabetes, or any auto-immune disorders?
- Have you traveled in the past 14 days to any regions affected by COVID-19?
Additional dental resources:
- Friendly Smiles Dental patient forms:
