In July 2021, in an effort to reduce face-to-face contact and the spread of COVID-19 in the community, the Australian Dental Association (ADA) released health advice urging our practice to restrict treatment to “urgent, emergency and essential treatment” or to perform treatment if delaying the treatment would result in an unfavourable result for the patient. This advice will remain in place for the duration of lockdown.
The ADA stated:
“For dental practitioners located in other areas within Greater Sydney, including Wollongong, Shellharbour, the Central Coast and Blue Mountains, practice should be restricted to essential care/treatments only. Dental care that does not meet this criteria should be deferred. As previously advised, the provision of care by registered dental practitioners should always be aimed at achieving an optimum outcome.”
In short, if your treatment can be deferred it will be deferred until it is safe for us to conduct our standard procedures once again. This is done purely to stop the spread of the virus and protect our community.
Aside from elective cosmetic procedures such as veneers and whitening, most dental treatment falls into the category of “essential”; however, everyone's case is different and so we have taken the approach of assessing every patient individually to determine whether we should be deferring your treatment until a safer time or not.
If you already have a check-up and clean booked from six months ago, your dentist - Dr Leo, Dr Ben, Dr Kate or Dr Joe - will assess your clinical notes in the lead up to your appointment, in order to determine whether your treatment is necessary based on their professional opinion. This is generally based on your general gum health, oral health, risk of tooth decay or risk of oral cancer. Otherwise we are seeing patients for the a number of reasons, including:
- Broken or cracked teeth
- Active tooth decay
- Pain of any type
- Patients who are at high risk of tooth decay
- Patients who are at high risk of gum disease
- Patients who are at high risk of oral cancers
- Patients taking medications that affect their oral health or have implications for their teeth
- Patients with ill fitting or broken dentures
We are here to help but there are a few things you can do to help us
- Please give the receptionist as much information as possible as to the reason for your visit
- Please use the QR code to check in and check out when attending your appointment
- Our staff will also be there to check and record your temperature on arrival
- Please wear a mask from the point you leave your house to the moment you sit down in the chair
- Please ensure your mask is covering your nose and mouth and refrain from touching your mask once you've put it on
- Upon arrival, please wait in your car and call the practice to let us know you have arrived for your appointment. The receptionist will let you know when to come upstairs for your appointment.
- Please use the hand sanitizer upon arrival and as you leave after your appointment
- Please don’t bring family members with you, unless you require someone to translate or it is absolutely necessary
We look forward to seeing you again soon, but in the meantime, stay safe and remember we are happy to answer any of your dental queries over the phone.