18 Mar A note from your dental team about COVID 19 *We are open for Emergencies
The ADA (American Dental Association) and the AZDA (Arizona Dental Association) have issued statements asking that dental offices to stay open during this time to alleviate any extra burdens emergency dental care would put on our Emergency Rooms.
What Prescott Dentistry is doing about it:
Our office will remain open to treat patients with urgent and emergent care needs.
We are asking that all patients scheduled for regular dental cleanings or elective treatment that are not in pain and/or have no dental concerns reschedule their cleaning for a later date.
How do you decide whether or not to keep your scheduled treatment appointment amid COVID 19 concerns?
To decide, it is important for you to know what is considered urgent and emergent care dental needs.
Please see click here to read the ADA Patient Handout regarding what constitutes a “Dental Emergency”.
Ultimately, it is up to you. You know your health status and body better than anyone. You must weigh all of your risk factors. It is our job to give you as much information as we can to make that decision.
We recommend that urgent care and emergent care appointments be kept to PREVENT pain, discomfort, swelling and/or infection. Your overall health has always been our #1 priority. Delaying dental problems only makes the issue worse over time. Tooth decay, infection, cracked/broken teeth can all cause dental abscesses. An infection or abscess in the mouth can be life-threatening and should be dealt with immediately.
If you plan on coming to your urgent or emergent care appointment, here is what you should know:
- We have numerous safety measures in place to keep our team and our patients healthy.
- We use Universal Patient Precautions, every day, on every patient and we always have. (Universal precautions is an approach to infection control to treat all human blood and certain human body fluids as if they were known to be infectious for blood borne pathogens.)
- We use medical grade cleaner in clinical rooms in between every patient and on all patient-contact surfaces throughout our office.
- We wear masks and gloves to protect our patients and ourselves.
- When patients arrive, we have new protocols in place:
- Every patient will be given a COVID 19 Screening Intake Form See Form
- To comply with “social distancing” every patient will be invited to bring their cell phone, call us when they arrive and wait in the parking lot until their appointment time.
- Prior to treatment, patients will use a 1.5% hydrogen peroxide rinse– Coronavirus is susceptible to oxidation. This lowers the patient’s oral viral load and minimize viral load in any aerosols generated.
- We will use ozonated water whenever using a hand piece is required during a dental procedure.
If you have any questions regarding this information or would like to talk to our dental team, please contact us at 928-445-1660. Thank you for taking the time to read this. We wish everyone in our practice and in our community a safe and healthy future.