Safety – both for patients and practice staff – is a top priority.
Our community has 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. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.
Our office follows 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 rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies’ recommendations. Our infection control procedures always meet or exceed what is required to ensure staff and patients safety.
We’ve asked all staff members to be mindful of personal health and anyone who doesn’t feel well to remain home. Our staff will also be required to be screened each day before work including a temperature check. All staff members have had COVID-19 training and are well equipped to follow all policies and procedures.
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:
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Please plan for appointment times to take 10-20 minutes longer than normal to allow for added protocols.
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Please arrive no more than 5 minutes before your appointment time to allow for social distancing
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In keeping with current ADA guidelines, your timing and method of treatment may be altered
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Consent and screening forms are located on our website and we require all patients to complete the form online or over the phone at least 2 days before appointment.
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You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
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Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
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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.
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Please wear a mask or face covering to our appointment.
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To help with social distancing guidelines, patients will not be allowed to bring others with them to the appointment unless they are the guardian of the patient.
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Because staff will be wearing more layers of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), the temperature in the office may be even cooler than you are used to. Please dress accordingly.
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Please be advised that we are going to great lengths to keep you and our staff safe. This requires a vast amount of PPE. Thus, you may be charged a PPE fee at each appointment.
We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at (706) 650-0468 or visit our website at www.carterorthodontics.com/contact-us/appointment/
Thank you for being our patient.
