Dear Patient,

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Good news! Governor Cuomo has approved the reopening of dental offices in New York for routine care.  As we are still waiting for some of our new equipment to be delivered, our office will open on June 15, 2020. We are looking forward to seeing you then. 

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While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety. Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. 

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Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the New York State Department of Health guidelines. We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

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As part of our new office protocols, we will be sending a list of questions that must be answered 48 hours prior to your visit, and again on the day of your visit. If we have not heard from you in that time frame, your appointment will be cancelled, and we will await your call to reschedule it.

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If you have a Monday appointment, these questions must have been answered by 2:00 PM (EDT) on the Thursday before, or we will cancel your appointment and await your call to reschedule it.

What we are doing:

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• We are screening all patients and staff daily for COVID-19 symptoms

• Our office will communicate with you 24-48 hours before your scheduled appointment to ask you screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office

• We will take your temperature with a non-contact forehead thermometer and your oxygen saturation level with a pulse oximeter

• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed. We will also ask you to wash your hands upon arrival at our office.

• To improve disinfection and reduce bacteria and viruses, we will use a cold fogger device to deliver HOCL disinfection throughout our office daily

• We are stocking our bathrooms and waiting area with chemical free HOCL spray for patient use

• We have added extra oral suction machines, as well as air purifiers to reduce bacteria and viruses. You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect  

• A special mouth rinse will be available in treatment rooms to use prior to procedures. Our hygiene procedures will minimize the amount of aerosols generated. We will limit the use of the cavitron, as well as the toothpaste polishing after your scaling is completed, as both of these create aerosol sprays

• We have installed “sneeze shields” on our front desk to protect you and our staff

• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment

• We ask that you try to come by yourself to your office visit . We ask that you wear a face mask or scarf when you enter our office, and only remove it when you are in our dental chair

• We will allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time

• In addition to our usual infection control protocol, we are using additional (Personal Protective Equipment) PPE including N95 Masks, face shields, and disposable cover lab jackets and hair covers. We are implementing new suction adaptors to reduce aerosol emissions

 

What you can do:

• If you feel sick in any way, please do not come; we’ll be glad to reschedule your appointment for two weeks later. If you have a fever, please reschedule your appointment

• We ask that all patients brush their teeth before arrival at our office, if possible 

• To keep you better informed, we ask that all patients sign up for text notifications as part of our virtual waiting room procedures, again to minimize your wait time in the reception area of the office

• We will ask you to remotely update all insurance profiles, medical histories, and other required paperwork online before your actual appointment, again to minimize interactions while in the office. All the forms will be available via our website. Any patient that requires help to access any of these tools can reach out to our office and we will try to guide you through it

• Weather permitting, please call us from outside the building when you have arrived. We will let you know when we are ready for you, and you can go straight back to a clean and sterilized treatment room

• Maintain social distancing of 6 feet or more with other patients and our front office team

• If your child is an existing patient, we will request that you remain in the waiting room, or outside the building, to limit the number of people in the office. Of course, if you or your child has concerns about this, please feel free to call us in advance of the appointment to address this, and we will try to work out something comfortable for all involved

• If you have any questions about our protocols, please ask them PRIOR to your visit; your office visit is only intended to discuss and care for your dental concerns

 

 

We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. 

Thank you for being patient!  We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors, and friends.

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Warmest regards,

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Dr. Grossman, Neil, and Renea

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