**Research as of March 16th at 1:30pm**
In light of recent events, I am pulling my blog slated for this week and addressing the Coronavirus. I’m sure as I am writing this, the information will change. Things are happening by the minute. The fear of the spread of the virus that causes COVID-19 is affecting every business, large and small. What can we do on our part as dental healthcare professionals to help to prevent the spread of Coronavirus?
I have researched every state’s dental association and found that most organizations are suggesting dentists reach out to their local health department, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention www.cdc.gov, and the American Dental Association. At this time, there is no mandate to close your dental practice, but some state officials are strongly recommending rescheduling patients with non-emergency dental treatment.
After urgent requests from Ohio Governor Mike Dewine, “The Ohio State Dental Board recommends that all dentists see emergency cases only as part of efforts to reduce the risk of patients and dental staff being exposed to the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19" according to an article written March 16th, 2020 at 2:13 PM EST and updated 2:45 PM EST by Julie Washington of the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
In the same article, the board goes on to say, “By rescheduling elective procedures, we are doing our part to prevent the community spread.”
Here is a list of those procedures considered non-emergency:
- Teeth cleaning
- Crowns
- Bridges
- Veneers
- Whitening
- Orthodontic visits that do not include those patients in pain
- Periodontal plastic surgery
- Cosmetic procedures
- Delay all appointments for patients with high risk, immunocompromised or ASA Physical Status Classification II and III. https://www.asahq.org/standards-and-guidelines/asa-physical-status-classification-system
Based on my research, personal protective equipment is scarce. By limiting your practice to emergency care, you will reduce the number of personal protective equipment needed to treat even those emergencies. There is a shortage of PPE not only in your dental practice but in healthcare overall. Ohio Governor Mike Dewine also made a public request to dental practices specifically asking please review your inventory and identify any surplus personal protective equipment and supplies. Once identified, contact your local Emergency Management Agency about sharing these goods with local hospitals and medical clinics for COVID-19 patients and clinicians. EMA contact list can be found here:
https://webeoctraining.dps.ohio.gov/ohiocountyEMADirectorList/countyemalist_web.aspx
At this time, state health departments have not issued a strict policy, but you should probably be prepared for one.
Illinois, Massachusetts and Virginia have also made similar recommendations.
I realize you have your own decisions to make here. The ADA is NOT going to mandate a closing simply because they are not a regulatory agency or governing body. But as Americans, we have been faced with challenges before. Right now, everyone, not just small business owners, is in the early stages of realizing that this situation is real, it’s happening, and it isn’t going to go away quickly. But - we will recover. Through this recovery, we have the opportunity to become better business owners, better healthcare providers and better employers/employees, better husbands/wives. And if you don’t kill your kids while at home, better parents.
Remember - all the dentistry that needs doing will still be out there when the dust settles. Take this time to focus on your practice - what you can do now to make sure you are ready to hit the ground running when the crisis has passed. We’ll be discussing some of those strategies in upcoming blogs. Until then, be safe and be strong.
