By Dr. Richard Wolfert, DMD  
The Toothboss, www.toothboss.com

The COVID19 pandemic was awful. There’s no questioning that. Yet it did force medical practices of all kinds to rethink how we keep patients safe.
‘60 Minutes’
This thought came to me while watching a recent episode of “60 Minutes.” The segment revealed the changes indoor facilities and businesses made during the pandemic and how many of those remain to this day. That got me thinking about my own practice.
The Toothboss during COVID19
We implemented a number of safety measures during the pandemic to keep our patients and staff safe. Those included:

  • Check-in procedure: Call first from the parking lot, no waiting in the waiting room, questionnaire to be filled first, hydrogen peroxide rinse, hand sanitizer, mask, and gloves.
  • Disinfectant process: Office disinfected with Povidone spray on chairs, counters and other objects.
  • Fogger: Spray with an “air scrubber” three times per day with an acid to also disinfect.
  • Upgraded PPE: N95 masks, gloves, and face shields; change out after appointments.
  • Sterilization: Continued sterilization of tools.
  • Air purifiers
  • Aerosols: Ordered high-powered suction machines.
    After COVID19
    With the exception of the protocol for coming into an appointment, a good number of these safety measures remain in place. In fact, many of these things have become normal procedures at most dental practices, such as regular disinfection of the office and disinfection between patients.
    The office fogger remains a fixture at the Toothboss. We only use it twice a day rather than three times. Masks and face shields have also become standard.
    We continue to use an air purifier in our office. I’m not sure that all dental practices have continued that.
    Sterilizing equipment was always a standard practice and continues to be.
    One thing we did observe post-COVID19 was that our old suction machines performed just as well as the “high-powered” machines we ordered during COVID19, which were huge and a bit intimidating to patients.
    Conclusion
    Nobody wanted an international pandemic. Yet it taught those of us in the medical profession a number of valuable lessons. It necessitated extra care to the safety of patients and staff. It also taught us to keep our guard up and be ready to adjust should the next iteration of the virus appear.
    Perhaps most importantly, we learned to value even more the relationships that are important to us. We haven’t lost sight of that at our practice and continue to employ the best practices to make a visit to the dentist safe for all involved.
    If it’s been a while since you’ve been to the dentist or you’re in between, please give us a call at The Toothboss at 781-335-0604.
    About the Author: Dr. Richard Wolfert, DMD is the owner of The Toothboss, 1121 Main St., South Weymouth. For more information, call 781-335-0604 or visit