COVID-19 crisis: Top 8 ways for safety of dentists
What can a Dentist or You do to keep yourself, your dental practice and your patients safe? We have compiled a list of procedures and protocols collected from reputed dental groups in the World that you can implement to control the spread of COVID-19 in your dental office.
7. Management of Medical Waste
It’s needless to say that the proper management of Medical Waste is a routine to prevent infections. Its more so now in the scenario of Pandemic COVID-19. Mark the surface of the bags and handle them according to the requirements for the management of medical waste. Also, keep in mind that the waste generated by the treatment of patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 is regarded as infectious medical waste.
If at all you are treating a COVID-19 confirmed patient, please update the concerned govt. authorities in your region. In the case of a worldwide pandemic, it is important that all such patients are accounted for so that proper quarantine and control can be done.
8. Disinfecting the Dental Office & Clinical Environment
In all the points covered above, it’s clear that the dental office environment can be highly infectious. So, regular and thorough disinfection is mandatory to limit the spread of COVID-19.
All the methods from 1 to 8 if followed properly help in maintaining the disinfection. The clinical area should be cleaned and disinfected regularly in accordance with available safety protocols, as should the public areas and appliances, including door handles, chairs, desks, and lifts.
Conclusion
Since December 2019, the newly discovered coronavirus (2019-nCov) has caused the outbreak of pneumonia in Wuhan and throughout China. Since then the virus has spread multiple countries and has been declared by WHO as a Global Pandemic.
Media briefing on #COVID19 with @DrTedros. #coronavirus https://t.co/TaP7YsqSaB
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) March 30, 2020
The spread has been rapid and there is no clear cut vaccine against COVID-19. With no definite treatment at present, the only logical way of controlling the spread is social distancing, avoiding large groups with many people with unverified travel or health status and maintaining proper disinfection in-home and a dental office.
A dental office in this scenario can be highly infective if proper protocols are not maintained. As of now, all elective or cosmetic procedures are to be postponed. Only emergency dental treatments are to be carried out after proper approval and screening of the COVID-19 status.
Check the webinar video by ADA on the protocols to be followed by the Dentists and Dental Professionals
On 17 March, the Dental Council of India advised dental colleges to halt all college activities, including classes, seminars, workshops, and camps, until 31 March. The council also issued clinical practice guidelines for dental teams on 17 March, and these included the following recommendations:
1. Every patient should be scrubbed with isopropyl alcohol extra-orally.
2. A preprocedural rinse with povidone-iodine should be used by every patient.
3. N95 masks or at least three-ply masks should be worn, as well as protective eyewear, a head cap, and a face shield.
4. Dental clinics should be fumigated periodically.
The IDA also has preventive guidelines for dental teams, and these can be accessed here.
