May 3rd, 2020
Dear Patients,
I hope you have all been healthy during this time. As many of you know we have been closed over the last 7 weeks, causing delays in your professional dental care. The reason you choose to come to our office is because you highly value your dental health. That trust you have in us we do not take lightly, and we highly value you. We plan to open for selective restorative procedures the week of May 11-15, with hygiene appointments (cleanings, periodontal maintenance, etc.) opening at a later date to be determined. For those of you who have appointments already scheduled that week and after, we will be calling each of you to confirm and possibly adjust the time/day of your appointment. Those who have had appointments cancelled over the last 7 weeks will also be called to reschedule. As always, we will do our best to schedule you as soon as possible, but I ask you to be patient with us.
I also want to let you know what changes we have made in our office to ensure the safety of both you and us. Our goal is to make our office the safest place you can be outside of your own home.
Pre-appointment Protocols:
-Screening phone call and COVID questionnaire.
-Patient to wait in vehicle and patient will be contacted when ready to bring back to treatment room.
-Upon entering, all patients are required to wear a mask. If you do not have a mask, one will be provided.
-Non-contact forehead temperature taken.
-Patients are directed to use hand sanitizer when they arrive.
-Cough/sneeze screen at front desk.
-Only the patient is allowed in the treatment room, and only one guest/family member is allowed to wait in the reception area during appointment.
Appointment Protocols:
-1 minute pre-procedural rinse with 1.5% hydrogen peroxide (most effective rinse at killing viruses)
-Provider will wear an n95 mask, a surgical mask, eye protection, and a faceshield for every patient.
-Provider will wear a new gown for each patient.
-Cleaned or disposable eyewear for each patient.
-At end of appointment, patients will wait in treatment room until checkout area is clear of patients.
Post-appointment Protocols:
-Cleaning of every surface within a 6 foot radius of patient chair with a hospital grade disinfectant proven to kill coronavirus.
-At checkout, all credit card transactions can be done without handing card to receptionist.
-Clean pens and used pens will be separated.
-Patients are encouraged to use hand sanitizer upon leaving.
Additional changes:
-The reception area and each treatment room have medical grade HEPA air purifiers that filter all air in each room every 15 minutes or less. In addition, the office ventilation system has HEPA filters installed.
-High contact surfaces such as reception area countertops, door handles, and credit card machine will be cleaned frequently.
-Daily temperature and health check of ourselves.
Some of the above protocols go above what is currently being recommended by the CDC for dental offices during this time. Furthermore, the above changes are in addition to the standard precautions that have always been adhered to at our office. Historically, dental offices have been held to one of the highest standards of infection control. This I know will enable us to fully adapt and adhere to the more stringent protocols now in place.
Again, we feel privileged that you trust us with your dental care, and I hope you trust us to provide an extremely safe environment in which to have that care.
Sincerely,
Robert Fromuth