There was a time when dentists would treat patients without donning gloves and with instruments that were merely dipped in boiling water for a few minutes to clean them. HIV and Hepatitis were not household names then. Viruses didn't figure in lay people's vocabularies or minds.
Today the only people who don't know or worry about infections are either the very ill informed or the very brave.
Since most patients figure in neither of the above categories, doctors and dentists all over the world have realized that being lax with regard to sterilization and people's safety is no longer acceptable or pardonable. Also it works both ways. Keeping a strict hygiene protocol ensures that the dentist also does not contract any disease from the patient. We owe it to our families.
At Dr Arya's we realized long ago that a perfunctory attitude to Sterilization and Hygiene just won't cut it. Right from the inception of our clinic we have been particular with regard to every detail regarding sterilization and infection control.
What do we do right :
1. THE RIGHT CHOICE
A lot of doctors boast about no longer boiling instruments but autoclaving them. Just autoclaving instruments is not nearly enough. The right autoclave matters. The recommended autoclave for Dental Instruments is a Class B autoclave. In these autoclaves the air is removed by a mechanical pump to create a vacuum before steam is introduced into the chamber. This ensures complete and adequate sterilization. Class B Sterilizers ensure the safety of doctors, their staff and patients and legally protects their practice.
2. THE RIGHT USE
We NEVER re-use gloves. Neither examination nor surgical. Washing and drying and reusing gloves is something we have never ever done. We spend much more because of this one little practice. But we believe it is totally worth the expense. Disposables are Disposables. This means that the plastic cups that patients use to rinse their mouths are NEVER washed and reused again. The same applies for suction tips, tissue papers and all other disposables.
3. THE RIGHT PROTOCOL
You can wash and clean and autoclave an instrument but if you store it improperly - it all amounts to naught. We bag each instrument individually before autoclaving. After the cycle is complete each instrument remains in its individual sealed pouch. We only open pouches when the patient is in the chair and we are about to begin the procedure.
4. THE RIGHT ATTITUDE
We know several dentists that work with patients without masks and sometimes without gloves. And when there is a known HIV positive case or a patient with tuberculosis - they will be scrambling to wear double gloves and double masks. We find that attitude senseless. You can never know what patient is carrying what disease. Not everyone has symptoms. It is better to treat every patient with the same kind of protection and care. This ensures that you contract nothing and you transfer nothing harmful as well. Forget about big diseases - we do not want you to catch even the common cold from us.
We don't save lives. At least not like heart specialists and surgeons. But we do make a difference.
However our work will have no meaning if we end up harming or compromising our patients in any way.
Your health is as important to us as it is to you.
For more information log on to http://aryasdentalclinic.com/
