Creating a safety culture and infection control awareness in the dental office
As we welcome our teams and patients back to our practices, Michelle Strange, MSDH, RDH, says it's vital that we act with clear communication skills to offer transparency, build trust, and promote infection prevention through education.
As the world continues the process of picking itself back up, dusting itself off, and trying to figure out how to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, dental offices are reopening and preparing to return to regular or semi-regular patient care. With enhanced knowledge of how infections spread and the current climate of fear, creating a more visibly safe health-care environment is more critical than ever.
Creating a safety culture to entice patients back and reassure them that they are protected from infection while in your care will be essential. Patients want and need to feel secure as well as have their COVID-19 fears eased. This is especially pertinent when dealing with patients who are susceptible to periodontal or peri-implant diseases.
So, how do you reassure your patients and get them back to your practice?
Through excellent communication, transparency, accountability, and trust, of course! These are the building blocks that will support your practice in this time of doubt and global fear.