Covid-19 Impact on Pennsylvania ’ s Dental Community
“ A common sentiment I hear amongst friends and colleagues is that they ’ re more cognizant now of everyday actions that help or hinder the spread of viruses and other pathogens . Public health officials have suggested the very mild flu season can be largely attributed to pandemic mitigation measures . Personally , this was the first time in many years I got through a winter without contracting a cold or other mild illness . While I don ’ t think we ’ ll turn into a society of ‘ germophobes ,’ I suspect that for many of us there will be for some time to come a heightened awareness of , engagement in , practices such as mask wearing ( in some situations ) that mitigate disease transmission . Besides , a lot of us turned masks into fashion statements and aren ’ t ready to let go of that !”
— Ward Blackwell , Executive Director
How did your staff handle all of the changes caused by COVID protocols ?
“ With multiple sources of guidance for COVID-19 protocols from the ADA , PDA and CDC , new protocols were established for the safety of our pediatric patients .”
Dr . Peter Ross , President , PAPD
“ In the private practice that I manage , I could not be more impressed or grateful for how each and every member of our staff was willing to commit to the new protocols for the safety of our patients and each other . As the guidance evolved , everyone was kept informed with vetted information and as they onboarded back into their positions , I could not have asked for better compliance . Having each team member engaged in following the policies and protocols gave the confidence and put them at ease .”
Linda Straub-Bruce , RDH , BSEd , PHDHP , President , PDHA
“ My staff embraced our key mission to provide safe awesome dental care to our patients while keeping them safe too . We all adhered to the appropriate COVID guidelines , and all got vaccinated ASAP as it was available . Safety first !”
Dr . James Tauberg , PDA President 2020-2021
“ My staff was invested in our practice and gave excellent support both in planning and implementing needed changes to my practice both in physical alteration , administrative policy changes and in getting the support and trust of our patients .”
Dr . David Tecosky
COVID-19 Timeline
2020 |
July 7 – ADA Advisory Task Force on Dental Practice Recovery launches Patient Return Resource Center for dentists and their teams to use when communicating with patients about what to expect when returning for in-person dental care . |
Sept . 28 – Global COVID-19 deaths exceed 1 million . |
October 15-19 – ADA hosts all-virtual annual meeting and House of Delegates . |
October 17 –
PDA hosts virtual annual business meeting .
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22 |
MAY / JUNE 2021 | PENNSYLVANIA DENTAL JOURNAL |
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