COvid Safety
safe dental protocols
We hope this finds you and your family in good health. We are delighted to share with you our practice updates and if we have not seen you since we reopened after the 1 st Covid lockdown, invite you back to Concordia.
Following the Government’s Tier 5 announcement on Monday 04th January 2021, we wanted to reassure our patients that we will remain open until such time as we are told otherwise. The Chief Dental Officer has issued a statement to say with the measures we have in place we can indeed remain open and that routine dentistry can continue.
We have been working hard behind the scenes to ensure we can treat you in the safest way. We have also installed new software to improve our communication & help the practice to become more environmentally friendly in going paperless. We have a Patient Portal where you can manage your appointments and update forms and details digitally in the comfort of your own home.
Infection control has always been a top priority for Concordia Dental Healthcare, you may have seen this during your visits to our practice, we ensure the highest levels of care and that this is both safe and comfortable. You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment; to help protect you and our dedicated team.
We ask that if you have any Covid symptoms: High temperature / new & continuous cough, loss of taste or smell or have been in contact with anyone who is symptomatic / confirmed case / contacted by track & trace / isolating then do not attend an appointment. We will happily reschedule if you need to cancel for these reasons.
New Protocols
Upon arrival at our East Grinstead practice we ask that you wait in the car or outside the practice & at our Hove surgery we ask that you wait outside the front door of the practice without touching the buzzer; we will come and get you to ensure space for social distancing & avoid having more than one person / family in the waiting room.
- We will send you an email with your appointment details and a link to fill out your forms before you arrive.
- Please use the hand sanitiser provided. Your temperature will be taken and recorded.
- We ask you to wear a mask when entering the practice, (once in surgery you can remove as surgery staff will have theirs on).
- In the practice we follow social distancing guidelines & wherever possible try to ensure that there is only one family in the waiting room.
- We have a digital system for paperwork that requires a signature; this is now completed on an iPad & can be emailed to you.
- An updated Medical form will be required.
- We have limited the touch points within the practice & all surfaces / touch points are frequently disinfected throughout the day.
- Please use the bathroom before attending your appointment to reduce the need to use the facilities at the practice.
- Contact less or card payments where possible & use the hand sanitiser upon departing the practice.
Personal protective equipment (PPE) has always been worn by our clinical teams, but due to the demand for PPE, the costs have increased significantly. New guidelines from the Government mean that our clinicians have to wear more enhanced PPE to minimise the risk of cross-contamination during certain treatments, as a consequence we are having to pass on some of the cost to the patient but please be reassured that we hope this is a temporary measure. We are committed to keeping costs to a minimum and hope to reduce this further as the cost for PPE reduces.
We have installed a new Air Changing system in each surgery to allow over 15 full air changes per hour – meaning we are extracting any particles created during treatment.
Two Different levels of PPE
We have two different levels of PPE, level one at £9.95 for procedures that do not produce aerosol (e.g. examination, consultation etc.) & PPE level two at £19.99 for procedures that do produce aerosol (e.g. scale and polish, filling, crown preparation etc.)
After each appointment the clinical staff have to leave the surgery & allow “fallow time” this means leaving the treatment room empty to allow any theoretical risk from airborne particles to settle before the room is thoroughly cleaned taking approximately 15 minutes meaning that we cannot operate at full capacity.
For all of our Practice Plan patients we are wavering the PPE charges, if you are not signed up to practice plan & would like to know about the other benefits that it has to offer, please get in contact with one of our reception team and they will be happy to explain the benefits.
We are doing all we can to ensure a smooth appointment for you; if you have any questions or concerns please do get in touch we will be happy to help.
Kindest Regards,
Dr Pieter and all of the Concordia Dental Healthcare Team