[Wathen1955]

My appointment was canceled last week, but I did receive this today from our dentist:

Safety is always our number one priority and our high standard of care ensures that your trust and safety are never compromised. We already, as a daily practice, assure universal precautions as outlined by CDC and OSHA standards of infection control. However, we are taking extended measures to further protect all our patients and team with the following additional protocols:

In compliance with the recommendations for public health, anyone with a cough or fever will not be allowed in the office and should stay home. We will be happy to reschedule your appointment for a later date.
Before your appointment, you have the option to stay in your car instead of the waiting room until we are ready to seat you in your personal operatory. Simply call us when you arrive and we will let you know when we are ready for you.
Upon entering our office, we will ask you to sanitize your hands.
At the beginning of every appointment, you will be asked to pre-rinse with an anti-bacteria mouth rinse.

There will be some changes when you come to your scheduled appointment:

A new look at check in/out counter. Sneeze guards are up at the counters and our wonderful front staff will be wearing a mask and face shield. You may not recognize them, but they are the same people that have been providing you excellent service. They have worked extremely hard behind the scenes to welcome you back.
Waiting room looking a bit bare. All magazines/books are removed as they are difficult to sanitize. “Do not sit” signs are on the chairs to manage six feet social distancing.
Air purifiers are placed throughout the office so that you can breathe in clean air.
COVID-19 Patient Screening Questionnaire: This is a form that must be filled out two days prior to your appointment AND on the day of your appointment. It is extremely easy (just yes or no questions!) but especially important in keeping everyone safe. We will send you the link via text or email (if we do not have your cell phone number). We may need to reschedule your appointment if the forms are not completed.
We are trying to avoid paper contact and are working towards sending you any consent forms, medical history updates, financial policy, treatment plans, etc. prior to your appointment via email. These forms will need to be completed prior to your appointment so please look out for them.

On the day of your appointment:

Please arrive a few minutes early in case there are any changes in your medical history, medications, etc. that needs updating.
Make sure that the COVID-19 Patient Screening Questionnaire is completed.
When you arrive, please stay in your car and call our office to let us know that you are here. We will let you know when we are ready to seat you.
Please wear a face covering before entering the office. If you do not have one, let us know and one of my staff will bring one out to you.
Please use hand sanitizer when you enter the office. It is to your left when you face the check-in counter.
Please come alone to your appointment. If you are accompanied by a driver, he/she will need to wait in the car. Parent/guardian will need to come inside the office to check in minor and then wait in the car until the appointment is completed. We can no longer allow a parent in the chair while minor is being treated unless special circumstances arise.
Your temperature will be taken with a touch-free thermometer. We will need to reschedule your appointment if you have a fever.
Please bring a pen in case your signature is needed.

If there are any changes with your insurance, please let us know as soon as possible to allow our insurance coordinator ample time to verify your benefits.
We will be communicating with you mostly via text and email. Therefore, please notify us if there is a change.

As part of the safety protocol, we are managing social distancing by staggering our hygienist’s schedules. Your appointment may be moved 20 minutes up or down or to a different time/day to allow distance between patients as well as allowing your hygienist to properly sanitize the operatory and change his/her PPE. It is imperative that you inform us as soon as possible if you need to reschedule your appointment so that we can accommodate another patient and efficiently manage our hygienists’ schedules. Appointment options may be limited.

In addition, my staff and I are implementing the following safety protocols to protect you:

Taking our temperatures daily to make sure we do not have a fever.
Not coming to work if we are not feeling well.
Sanitizing high touch areas such as door handles, chairs, and counters frequently.

Lastly, we thank you in advance for your patience, understanding and flexibility as we adjust to our “New Normal.” From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for trusting me and my team for your dental needs. Cindy and I enjoyed reading your well wishes in the emails and texts these past two months as we sheltered in place. The trust and confidence that you have placed in me and my team means a great deal. Rest assured that we will continue to do our best to provide you quality dentistry with exceptional patient service. I look forward to seeing you soon.
Respectfully,

Jesus...I just want my teeth cleaned. From the above verbiage, it seems that I coming from a different planet.