RE-OPENING HYGIENE SERVICES FOR OUR PRACTICE

Hello again! We hope you and your family are healthy and doing well in these past uncertain weeks. Again, our commitment is : to your health and safety and this is our primary overriding concern.

We wish to re-iterate the changes we have made: doors on all treatment rooms to isolate any patient from another is MAJOR; high end TRUE HEPA air purifiers which filter the air 99.97% in each treatment room and that are capable of an excess of 50 Air Changes per Hour (ACH’s)! We also have and will be wearing PPE that exceeds the ROYAL COLLEGE OF DENTAL SURGEONS OF ONTARIO (RCDSO) guidelines and meets the COLLEGE of DENTAL HYGIENISTS OF ONTARIO guidelines.

This is very important information because a very large proportion of dental practices CANNOT offer FULL hygiene services because:

1) they cannot isolate their treatment rooms due to: ”Open concept” design; 2) they cannot acquire the PPE to meet Hygiene guidelines; or 3} they have elected to not incur the costs required!

As a consequence:1}some practices have no hygiene services;

2} some practices have “ADAPTED” by providing ONLY hand scaling with no aerosols---this MEANS: NO cavitron (high tech Ultra sonic device) , NO ProphyJet (high tech air polishing) NO Polishing with handpiece.... AND you must “rinse and spit”into a cup or spittoon like 30-40 years ago—NO air/water syringe rinses!! And that is it!!!!!! This is only “half a cleaning” in our view!!

3} some practices are moving patients after rudimentary hand scaling to the Dr.’s treatment room where he/her will complete the polish ( an aerosol procedure)!! Which, of course, increases patient-staff contact X 2?

IN OUR PRACTICE, we want you to have the same ideal treatment you have been accustomed to; and we feel is the ultimate we can deliver for your particular oral situation whether it requires an “aerosol generating procedure”or not!!!”

THE IMPORTANT CONSEQUENCE FOR YOU AND US IS THAT IF, AN AEROSOL GENERATING PROCEDURE IS CONDUCTED; YOUR TREATMENT ROOM MUST REMAIN “DORMANT or FALLOW” FOR 15 MINUTES PRIOR TO A HEALTH CARE WORKER EVEN DISINFECTING THE TREATMENT ROOM! Again, YOUR health and safety is our primary concern!

The long story-short is that: many of you that booked an appointment at 9:20 am 6 months ago ---we may have to alter your appointment to 9:40 am to allow sufficient “fallow” time as per the Ontario Ministry of Health requirements and ALSO to follow guidelines to minimize patient-patient interaction!! We have to be “traffic cops” in our own environment! It is our wish to keep all patients “on track” with their predicated/prescribed due dates for recare and for your ultimate oral health BUT the actual times on that day must be modified. Please be aware our auxiliaries/hygienists are working thru or minimizing their lunch break to facilitate these “shifted appointments”. Please have patience with our endeavors to service you!

It is imperative that all patients arrive ON TIME since patient “collisions” should be minimized as per Covid 19 guidelines. Also missed appointments cannot occur since we are trying to “catch up”on the last 4 months –these appointments are coveted. A missed appointment may result in our inability to see you again for another 6 to 9 months.

FURTHERMORE, we may ask you to PRE-PAY your hygiene visit since it is usually routine billing and somewhat predictable. This will allow you to exit without a second encounter with reception and minimize interaction with staff as per guidelines of COVID. IF, or should a discrepancy occur, ( for example, we needed to take an additional x-ray of a tooth that was hurting you)---we will “catch you next time” and make an appropriate debit/credit on your account. We also may ask you to exit or enter through a different entrance/exit to facilitate “one way” traffic and prevent patient to patient close encounters.

ALSO, Dr. Robson will not be conducting usual and customary recall examinations! Although it is his usual custom and gives him much pleasure to at least say “hello”, COVID precludes it at present. We have already set up computers such that “teledentistry” is possible and such that Dr. Robson will be able to see your X-rays remotely from any workstation in the office! Furthermore, your hygienist will be able to take an intra-oral photograph of any tooth that may be questionable and Dr. Robson will be able to view it in real time. As I’m sure you are aware, we already have in place high tech abilities. In this vein however, PLEASE let us know if you have a concern prior to your appointment!!—many,many times a patient loses a filling or chips a tooth;and since they are coming soon they think that they will just wait until their checkup to draw it to our attention ---please give us a heads up!!

Thank you for your patience and loyalty throughout this ordeal. We value your trust in us and look forward to welcoming you back and seeing you again.

Sincerely,

The Entire Team at Dr. Stuart Robson’s office.