To All Our Patients and Friends,
Everyone at The Tooth Fixer hopes you and your family are happy and in good health. Our community has been through a lot in the past few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. As our office continues preparations for reopening, we continue to treat emergency patients and postpone elective and non-emergency treatment until June 2. While many aspects of what we do must change, one thing that will remain the same is our commitment to your safety.
Infection control has always been a top priority at The Tooth Fixer. Our sterilization and infection control processes are made to keep our patients safe and comfortable. Our office has always followed all guidelines 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 recommendations that are issued. We do this to ensure that all our infection control protocols are up-to-date.
For the health and safety of our patients and staff, we have made many enhancements to the protocols already in place. Along with the special precautions we are taking, we ask our patients to do their part to help us in this effort. Below is a list of new procedures that we ask all patients to follow:
1. Expect a call from our office 24-48 hours before your appointment. As well as confirming your appointment date and time, we will ask all patients to answer a few health-related questions.
It is very important that we speak with you and complete this Pre-appointment screening. If we are unable to complete Covid screening we will have to cancel and reschedule your appointment.
If you are sick, running a fever, coughing or not feeling well, please reschedule your appointment and do not enter the office. We are happy to reschedule your appointment at no charge and we thank you for considering the health of others. If you have traveled to any areas outside of U.S. within two weeks of your scheduled appointment, please contact our office and reschedule.
2. On the day of your appointment, please arrive 10 minutes early. Please remain in your car and call our office # (860) 875-5050 to begin check in process. Once you have checked in, we will let you know when it is safe to come in to the office.
3. In accordance with the CDC’s recommendation, ALL patients and their companions must wear a mask or cloth face covering upon entering and exiting the office.
4. A member of our staff will greet you and take your temperature with a no-touch infrared thermometer (All our team members will be screened every single day as well). If your temperature is less than 100° F, we will review the COVID-19 pre-appointment screening.
5. Once screening is completed, a team member will ask all patients to wash their hands with soap and water or use hand sanitizer. We will then escort you directly to your treatment room. Finally, an antimicrobial rinse will be provided for you to perform prior to the start of your appointment.
*Note: Only the patient will be taken into the treatment room. If a child is being seen, a parent or guardian may accompany them after approved pre -screening.
We have trained and educated our team regarding Covid-19. We have added or enhanced equipment and many of our office protocols. Here is a list of what we do to ensure that your visit to The Tooth Fixer is a safe one:
1. Your treatment room will be thoroughly sanitized and prepared with CDC approved disinfectant.
2. We have suspended all use of Cavitrons, (ultrasonic dental hygiene scalers) to limit aerosols during your cleaning appointment.
3. We have installed two medical grade air purifiers. We have also installed Merv13 air filters in our HVAC system.
4. We will be utilizing rubber dams or Dry-Shield high-velocity evacuation system for removing aerosols and saliva from the mouth.
5. Our team will be wearing a full set of personal protective equipment including N95 facemasks, gloves, gowns, goggles and/or face shields for everyone’s protection.
6. A team member has been assigned to wipe down and disinfect all traffic surfaces including the countertops at the lobby, door handles and the reception desk. These contact surfaces will be sanitized after patients and throughout the day.
7. Until further notice, our reception room will no longer offer magazines, coffee, children ’ s toys etc as these items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
8. Protective shields or “Sneeze guard” have been installed in our front desk area
9. When possible, consider making payment arrangements in advance to avoid any delays and allow for contactless exit from the appointment.
10. In order to allow for social distancing between patients, patients may be offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
11. We request that you inform us of any changes in your health that occurs within 14 days after your appointment.
Thank you so much for your patience and understanding during this time. We appreciate your flexibility and encourage feedback. We will continue to monitor guidance from the State of Connecticut, the CDC, and the ADA. We will make every effort to let patients know of any changes in advance. As always, if you have any questions please feel free to call at 860-875-5050.
Dr. Ashland and the entire Tooth Fixer staff look forward to seeing you again soon!