Long before COVID-19 protocols, medical and dental professionals had worked diligently on the control and prevention of infectious diseases. 

For Calgary dental clinics, The Alberta Dental Association & College sets strict infection prevention guidelines.

Before Alberta dental offices could even consider opening back up, the ADA&C created specific COVID-19 regulations for control and prevention as well as staff preparedness.

These include stringent hand washing, pre-screening patient protocols, clinic layout preparations, personal protective equipment and even rules about receiving deliveries! 

Prevention

During a pandemic, we can never completely eliminate the possibility of transmission. 

But here at TREC Dental and all our clinic locations, we are following or exceeding all expert recommendations for infection prevention.

The World Health Organization stated the virus commonly spreads person to person through droplets from the nose or mouth of an infected person.

These droplets can land on and contaminate surfaces in the dental room. 

After a patient leaves the dental appointment, the dental assistant will wipe down all surfaces with a disinfectant and clean the room thoroughly before the next patient arrives. 

What about aerosol transmission?

WHO has stated more research is needed to determine the role of aerosols in the transmission of the novel coronavirus. 

What we do know is that outbreaks have happened in close settings with poor ventilation.

We also know that dental hygiene or other restorative dental procedures can create aerosols. 

So before your dental appointment, you will be screened for COVID-19.

We also ask patients to wear a mask once inside the clinic – we will give you one if you do not have access to your own mask, but supplies are limited so we ask you to make an effort to supply your own!

To further minimize the number of patients in our clinic at one time, we only have limited dental chairs open, and we stagger appointment times. 

If you are a high-risk patient in need of dental care, consider an appointment at the beginning or end of the day to further reduce your exposure. 

Aerosols During Procedures

During routine dentistry, including cavity fillings or a hygiene appointment, the high powered tools we use can create and distribute aerosols in the room. 

To reduce the creation of aerosols, our dentists and hygienists use high powered suction, which has been shown to capture almost all aerosols produced. 

Additionally, when it comes to aerosols, the highest risk of infection is to the practitioner, not to the patient! 

So, to ensure the safety and health of our staff, we might look a little different at your next appointment! 

To reduce the risk of infection to ourselves, we will be donning PPE, including masks, disposable or washable gowns, face shields, caps and of course, gloves!

In addition to PPE, all staff entering the clinic receive a COVID-19 screening each day. 

A Dental Scaler’s Journey 

All of our tools, if not disposable, are put through a multi-step cleaning process.

During an appointment, a tool is wiped between each use to remove fluids or visible debris.

After its work is done in your mouth, a dental tool makes a trip to the sterilization room. 

Soiled tools are put in an ultrasonic cleaner with a disinfectant for decontamination. 

This cleaner uses ultrasonic vibrations to shake loose any remaining particles  combined with a detergent to sanitize.

After their hot bath, tools will move to the autoclave.

The dental autoclave uses high heat to eliminate any traces of infectious material.

The autoclave reaches temperatures above 130 C!

How do I know if the dental office near me is safe?

Check your dentist’s website to learn more about all precautions they are taking to prevent the spread.

2020 is halfway in the books, and not a moment too soon! What a year it has been, with lots of great memes/hashtags/slogans including #cancel2020, #reboot2020 and so on. The year started out ominously enough as we watched Australia burn at a record rate, while faint rumblings of some strange flu on the other side of the world filtered over. A few short days later it looked like we might have a war between the US and Iran. In the aftermath of that dispute, tragedy struck close to home as a flight with many folks returning to Edmonton and other parts of Canada was tragically struck down. Before the month was out, tragedy struck again as a global basketball superstar, Kobe Bryant, perished with his daughter and several others in a terrible accident. The year had gotten off to a grim start. It had to get better, right?

Fast forward just 6 weeks, and that flu had become a global wrecking ball headed every which way. People were streaming a movie that (briefly) starred Gwyneth Paltrow, and had some wondering if the cause of her character’s demise was global Contagion or that she had consumed one of Gwyneth’s scientifically-questionable personal care products. “Experts” were still suggesting it was safe to travel cautiously, believe it or not. Once again, a basketball player entered the spotlight, mocking the precautions only to test positive for the Coronavirus days later. Overnight the NBA and the NHL shut down, and then most realized “this must be serious if professional sports are shutting down!”

Since then? The stock market saw its biggest single day loss in decades as Canada and most of the rest of the world turned off their economies. Planes stopped flying for the first time since 9/11. Grocery store workers and truckers heroically continued working out of obligation to the rest of us. Many of us began learning how to work from home while juggling computer time and physical space with our families who were also working and learning from home. We all wished we had bought shares in Zoom. We tried to remember how to turn video and audio off to avoid embarrassing ourselves in front of our colleagues as we tried to find substitutes for toilet paper which was all of sudden worth more than gold.

At least it’s finally July. We’ve adapted very well to the changes locally and nationally – wearing masks made by kids, grandmas or clothing manufacturers, 3D printed faceshields and realizing that just a little distillery-made hand sanitizer goes a long way (and goes best with a towel). While we may not be out of the woods, the progress we’ve made locally in containing the spread of the virus has been remarkable, especially when we look at our neighbours to the South, who just can’t seem to agree on ANYTHING.

We sincerely hope that you and your family have made it through this trying stretch safe and sound. Our team at TREC Dental took advantage of the time we were closed to update all our protocols and processes, and over the last several weeks we have put our new rules to the test with great results. If you are making it out of hibernation, and getting caught up on your dental care is on your list of things to tackle now that you’ve run out of projects at home, we’d be thrilled to welcome you back. You can find plenty of information on our new protocols on our clinics’ websites. All the best for a wonderful summer!