COVID-19 Safety Procedures

Mobile Dentistry Safety Guidelines

Due to the COVID-19 virus, all team members will be following new guidelines in order to protect our patients, clinicians, and facility staff. The health and safety of our patients, team members, and community remain our utmost priority. Therefore, we have updated our standard operating procedures with additional protocols to ensure our infectious disease control policy is up-to-date and adheres to the new guidelines and regulations.

We will continue to adapt as we receive further guidance from state and dental agencies. Our focus is to continue operations with safety as our top priority.

Dental care partner coordinating care with Enable Dental.

Scheduling

Our teams are flexible in order to meet the needs of our patients. Appointment times will be longer due to the additional time needed for personal protective equipment (PPE), health screenings, seeing patients in their individual rooms, and increased infection control between patients. Our mission is to serve our patients during this time, especially given the increased risk our elderly and immunocompromised patients now face if they were to seek care outside of their home.

  • We limit the number of facilities and patients seen each day.
  • For safety of other patients and our staff, we do not enter any facilities that have active COVID-19 cases.
Dental assistant consulting with patient in a senior living home setting.

Appointment Accompaniment

It is highly suggested the caregiver/POA not accompany the patient to the visit. If a POA or any guest accompanies the patient to the appointment, they will be asked the same health screening questions as the patient, and responses will also be documented in the patient notes. Additional questions that would need to be asked of the POA:

  • Have you been outside of your home state within the last 14 days?
  • Have you been within close proximity of a confirmed case of COVID-19?

If additional help is needed during an appointment, our team members will work with the on-staff nurses and caregivers for additional support.

Close up of dentist's hand using dental xray on tablet at oral health appointment.

Dental Team Operation

We understand that each facility or community center operates differently. As such, our team is able to adjust their operational  procedures in order to better serve the unique needs of the establishment. Depending on the facility and their preference, our clinical team will be able to either travel from room to room, or to see patients in a centralized location.

Our providers also strictly observe all facility screening procedures upon entry.

Female dentist treating female patient in dental chair at home.

Employee Health & Safety

  • Continuously review changes of operating procedures as new information is available
  • Daily Employee Self-Health Assessment, which includes a temperature check, as well as a complete a self-health questionnaire assessment
  • Review and training on PPE (requirements, donning and doffing PPE, etc.)
  • Discuss any encountered operational issues or risks
  • Review any outstanding regulatory requirements
Dentist talking with patient at outset of at-home appointment.

Health Screenings on Patients

  • Temperature checks for all patients (99.6 or above will not be seen)
  • Health screening questions are added to the clinical notes for clear documentations about patient’s health (the day of treatment)
  • If the patient is unable to communicate their health conditions, we will ask their caregiver to answer these questions for the patient on their behalf
Dentist suite in a dental practice with instruments on a tray ready for the dentist.

Equipment & Supplies

Our team members will be wearing the PPE items described below:

  • Surgical Head Caps
  • Face Shields
  • Level III Masks
  • N95 or KN95 Masks
  • Disposable Gowns
  • Shoe Coverings*

*As of 5/1/2022, surgical head caps and shoe coverings are no longer required, but can be worn upon request.

All equipment and PPE will be cleaned appropriately with CaviCide(R) (medical-grade disinfectant cleaner), or disposed of in biohazard bags to eliminate cross-contamination. We also ensure peak performance and sterility of our equipment by cleaning and performing tests regularly.

  • Shock Waterlines
  • Waterline Testing
  • Clean Autoclave
  • Weekly Spore Test