Any patient who reflects from home on whether he should go to a dental clinic in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic may think that it is an unnecessary risk if "nothing hurts." This can cause that person to wait to see the dentist until they have serious complications, such as periodontitis.
It is not surprising that patients can have that "distrust" towards the dental clinic. It is a place where the patient has to remove mask and dentist is very close to them, even touching their mouth. Not to mention the fear of the possibility that there are too many people in the waiting room.
To improve the confidence of patients in the dental clinic after COVID-19, several actions can be taken. Many of them you may already carry out, as security measures, but it never hurts to communicate them to the patient or do them in front of patients so that they can see the risk of contagion in your dental clinic is minimal.
Extend disinfection measures and communicate it to patients
A dental clinic should always have a washing, disinfection and sterilization protocol regulated by Royal Decree 1591/2009, of October 16, by the Illustrious General Council of Colleges of Dentists and Stomatologists and by various European standards.
However, with the arrival of COVID-19, these measures become even more relevant and appliances play an even more important role in clinics. Disinfection systems such as Higyenium or autoclaves such as those of Mocom have technological advances that make disinfection, washing and sterilization of the clinic a simple and safe process.
By hanging posters in the clinic indicating that these disinfection processes are carried out with the best machines on the market, or even easily explaining what the process consists of, it is possible to give a feeling of transparency and extra confidence to patients.
Carry out all possible protective measures
Wearing disposable gloves, protective goggles and a mask are just some of the measures that help convey confidence to patients, as well as contribute to the barrier effect and prevent cross contamination. There are even clinics where dentists are wearing disposable booties and caps.
Another way to show that the risk of contagion in the dental clinic is minimal is to remove the plastic from any of the materials or instruments that we are going to use in front of the patient. In this way, you will see that it is sterilized and that it will only be used with it.
Other actions that can be tried to do in the patient's sight are hand washing or disinfection of surfaces before and after the mouth examination.
It is also recommended that, before any examination, the patient rinse a mouthwash for 30 seconds, with either 1% hydrogen peroxide or 0.2% povidone iodine. In addition, before entering the clinic, the patient's temperature must be taken and, in case of fever, he should be sent back.
Reduce the capacity of the dental clinic
Dental clinics have to reduce capacity to guarantee that there can be a distance of 1.5 meters between people. This affects two very specific places in the clinic: the reception and the waiting room.
For the reception it is essential that order is maintained and respecting the safety distance. As for the waiting room, you have to place the chairs at a minimum distance of 1.5 meters and remove all the magazines, as well as the toys for the little ones.
Some dentists get disappointed when I tell them about reducing patient footfall until vaccine comes. The reason of their disappointment is loss of revenue. But that’s not completely true. Anyone who has heard about the Pareto principle or 80/20 rule, knows that 80% revenue comes from the 20% of customers. Smart dentists can apply that rule here without having to face major revenue loss.
This pandemic is going to stay here for at least next few more months, until then practices can offer only emergency and expensive treatments like dental implants, braces or Invisalign while restricting other low-ticket patients. This strategy could be really useful for someone whose clinic is in a Covid hotspot area.
Improve dentist-patient and patient-dentist communication
Communication is vital to gain confidence of the patient. For this reason, as I have been recommending throughout the article, it is very important to inform why certain actions are carried out that prevent the transmission of the coronavirus in the clinic. Gestures such as explaining that the mouth should be rinsed with a mouthwash to disinfect the mouth or even showing the machines with which instruments are sterilized are ways of generating confidence.
The correct cleaning of all the spaces in the dental clinic is also part of the hygiene protocol, even in those in which sanitary procedures are not carried out, such as the waiting room, office or reception, since they are traveled by many patients and companions every day. Special attention must be paid to the surfaces most susceptible to being touched, such as tables, chairs or doors, and cleaning has to be daily.
It is also essential to wash hands with disinfectant soap before and after treating patients, even if gloves have been used. Rings and bracelets must be removed and nails must be short. Having equipment that prevents the use of hands more than necessary, such as water fountains that are operated with the foot, is another recommended practice in your dental clinic.
Having the best hygiene, disinfection and sterilization systems will prevent infections and make patients trust you more, especially at a time like we are living with the COVID-19 pandemic where security against possible infections has taken on greater relevance .
Transparency, security measures and communication are the keys to regain trust in dental clinics.