What to Expect at Millbrae Dental Care Many of our patients ask us what will be different at Millbrae Dental Care how we have prepared for COVID19. The truth is, a lot of the changes happen behind the scenes. Medical and dental professionals have been dealing with blood-borne, airborne, and saliva-borne illnesses and diseases for decades. While it is not our intention to minimize the severity of COVID19, by training most offices were already prepared for it. Our office has been following the CDC, ADA, and CDA COVID-19 guidelines closely while they develop and evolve, to ensure our entire team, office, equipment, and patients meet or exceed the new standards of care. We are thrilled that you are interested in returning to our office and happy to share with you the precautions and guidelines that are now in place. As always, if you have any specific questions about your appointment please call us; We are happy to help.
You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example:
» Our reminder emails will have COVID19 screening questions for you to consider. If you have any symptoms you are asked to notify us and cancel/postpone your appointment.
» All patients and visitors to our office are required to wear a mask.
» Upon arrival at our office, you be asked a series of COVID19 risk questions and we will take your temperature with a contactless thermometer.
» Plexiglass “sneeze guard” shields at the front desk.
» Clean and dirty pen holder at the front in case you need to sign something.
» Hand sanitizer at the front desk that we ask you to use when you enter the office.
» No longer offer magazines, children’s toys, and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
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» Cleaning appointments have been shortened up a bit to allow more time between patients. This will help minimize the number of people in the office.
» We request that you continue to practice social distancing while in the office waiting room
» You will see HEPA filters all over the office humming away filtering the air. Sorry for the added noise.
» HVAC system now has high-intensity UV air scrubbers + MPR 2800 Filters.
» COVID19 Hand washing instructions are in all bathrooms.
» Reminder to wear your mask signs are located about the office.
» All employees go through a daily pre-work temperature check and sign/symptom check.
» Counters are wiped clean after patient contact.
» Most procedures will be done with high volume suction. Even cleaning appointments. We now have an additional vacuum next to your head to remove all potential aerosols. Again, these may be a bit louder than you are used to, but safety is important.
» We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.
Once in the ducts, it is forced by this high intensity UV light. UV light is known to kill bacteria and viruses. We never shut this UV light off unless opening it for service, and we check daily to make sure it is operating while we are in the office. Just one more of the many COVID-19 related additions in our office.
We then redirect this filtered air towards the central heating and air-conditioning cold air return duct which has a second stage near HEPA filter attached to it. Once this air is pulled through the second stage filter, it is exposed to a high-intensity UV light that kills 99%+ of all bacteria and viruses as it flows by. Finally, the air is forced back into the office, clean and ready to breathe. These small footprint filters can "scrub" our entire office air supply four times per hour.
Once we have removed all the used dental instruments, tools, supplies, and the required chair and equipment protective supplies, we wipe all exposed surfaces down with CaviWipes. We then allow more than five minutes for the CaviWipes to do their job before we re-cover the chair headrest, handles, cameras, etc with protective bags/covers. Again, this is all done "behind the scenes" between patients so that you know the office operator is clean and sterilized before you sit down with the doctor or hygienist.
We ask that all patients, employees, delivery, labs, friends, and anyone entering the office to wear some kind of face mask. As long as it covers your mouth and nose, and you can comfortably breath in it, please wear it. If you will accompany someone to our office we ask that you not stay in the waiting room unless required for support or guardianship.
Though not a perfect screening method, forehead temperature is a strong indicator of viral or bacterial infection. When used in conjunction with risk factor evaluation such as potential exposure, loss of taste or smell, nasal congestion etc, it can be a highly effective method of identifying potentially sick employees and patients. If any of our employees display a high risk factor we ask that they self quarantine for at least fourteen days or until they have a negative test result.
» Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure to the virus. People with these symptoms may have COVID-19:
» Fever or chills
» Cough
» Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
» Fatigue
» Muscle or body aches
» Headache
» New loss of taste or smell
» Sore throat
» Congestion or runny nose
» Nausea or vomiting
» Diarrhea
Look for emergency warning signs for COVID-19. If someone is showing any of these signs, seek emergency medical care immediately:
» Trouble breathing
» Persistent pain or pressure in the chest
» New confusion
» Inability to wake or stay awake
» Bluish lips or face
Have questions about dental implants, sleep apnea, TMJ treatment, or some general dental questions?
email or call us: (650)-583-5880
We'd love to hear from you.
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