September is Dental Infection Control Awareness Month (DICAM) and Lane & Associates is excited to share our commitment to ensuring safety at our offices!

The Organization for Safety, Asepsis, and Prevention (OSAP) is encouraging all dental organizations and dental staff to participate in this campaign with the goal of raising awareness, sharing infection control best practices, and joining the conversation on social media.

Our offices will be participating throughout the week in the daily OSAP Challenge on social media which has a specific theme for each day of this week!

INFECTION CONTROL DAILY THEMES:
  • Tuesday: Hand Hygiene Infection Control
  • Wednesday: Dental Unit Waterline Infection Control
  • Thursday: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Infection Control
  • Friday: Dental Instrument Sterilization Infection Control

What is Dental Infection Control?

Infection Control within the Dental Office is extremely important to ensure a clean environment for patients and staff. Due to the close interactions between patients, dental equipment, and dental employees in a dental office, having infection control systems in place and best practices is vital.

Gloves, masks, eyewear, and protective apparel help protect you and the dental team from exposure to potentially harmful microorganisms including COVID-19. It’s up to us to make sure we Break the Chain of infection so that every dental visit is a safe dental visit. Let’s review some best practices we implement in our dental offices.

1. Hand Hygiene

  • Hand hygiene (e.g., handwashing or hand antisepsis) substantially reduces potential pathogens on the hands and is considered the single most critical measure for reducing the risk of transmitting organisms to patients and healthcare staff.
  • Washing our hands first before donning gloves means we’ve removed germs before putting our gloves on. That means that if the gloves get damaged, those germs will not transfer.
  • For routine dental examinations and nonsurgical procedures, handwashing and hand antisepsis is achieved by using either a plain or antimicrobial soap and water.

2. Dental Unit Waterline Treatment

  • Dental unit waterlines are the long, narrow tubes that run to the dental chair (unit). These waterlines carry water from the public water supply to the dental equipment we use to treat and clean your teeth.
  • We treat our dental unit waterlines on an ongoing basis with products specially designed to eliminate any germs. We also test the water regularly as recommended by the CDC, to make sure that everything is working properly.
  • As an added bonus, our offices are proud to utilize Sterisil Straws which have an automatic shock treatment that is released to kill pre-existing bacteria and the straw releases an EPA residual disinfectant ensuring our waterlines prevent bacteria for 365 days.

3. Personal Protective Equipment

  • All staff are trained on what type of PPE should be used and how to properly don and doff (i.e. put on and take off) their PPE. They are also trained on the limitations of PPE, proper care & maintenance of PPE, and proper disposal of PPE.
  • Patients are also given PPE during dental procedures such as sterile dental napkins & should be wearing their own masks when moving throughout the dental office during this time.

4. Dental Instrument Sterilization

  • All instruments are sterilized by cleaning them first, that’s because if there were any debris stuck to the instruments it would not be possible to properly sterilize them. After that, we place them in special closed pouches or wrap them. Then we place these in a UV sterilizer that kills every germ present on the instruments. The end result is clean and sterile instruments for each of our patients.
  • We test these sterilizers by following the CDC recommendations on using a special test kit containing spores—these are hardier than normal bacteria and germs. Using this test, we can check that the sterilizer is doing what it is supposed to do. If the hardy spores in the test kit are killed in the sterilizer then we know it is working to kill all of the germs, including COVID.

We hope this information is helpful to our patients and other dentists throughout the state. If you would like to learn more please visit the OSAP website here.

PATIENT CONTEST

We want to challenge our patients to follow our lead during DICAM month and want to give away some fun prizes to those that participate! Starting on Monday, September 28th we want to see your #LAADICAM20 posts! These can range from photos of your kids properly wearing their own PPE (their masks) to creating your own dental office at your house to videos of a fun dance while washing your hands!

Our Patient contest will run from Monday, September 28th at 8AM to Wednesday, September 30th at 12AM. We will pick Three Winners to receive Automatic Toothbrush Prize Sets (including Quip, Oral B, or Burst)!

Rules: Must be an LAA patient to participate. Must post your photo or video to your social media page and use #LAADICAM20 to be eligible for entry. We will contact the winner via social media. Good luck to all participants!

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Surgical Masks for Healthcare Professionals

As the world starts to reopen, healthcare professionals across all avenues of specialties are still in need of PPE. Therefore, these medically approved Fabric Surgical Masks are one way that we craft enthusiasts can help! Due to the CDC recommendations, we set out to find a mask solution for the medical community. 

Our first round of 900 masks was gladly received by local hospitals and healthcare facilities. Now, however, we want to take it one step further by creating surgical masks with slots to add filters.

WakeMed Hospital sent us directions for a Surgical Mask that allows for a filter to be inserted, along with instructions for ribbon ties versus elastic ties. Namely mentioning that these ties will give continued comfortability throughout long-time wear. We used this pattern as a template to create our own step-by-step surgical mask sewing directions for our volunteers.

Check out our new design belowMuch love to WakeMed for sharing your medical professional sewing pattern. This adaptation has been proven by our doctors to be efficient for continued use and a successful way to help the environment. Likewise, it allows the use of N95 masks to be kept for high-risk frontline workers.

.materials to sew graphic

Craft Enthusiasts and Volunteers:

Deploy yourselves again! Help us to continue in the fight and push your crafting skills to the next level! Read through our new Surgical Mask Sewing Instructions below, email us at marketing@lanedds.com once you finish, and let’s keep crafting for those that need it most!

Give to a healthcare worker, friend, or return to Lane & Associates to be distributed appropriately. We hope these fabric surgical mask sewing instructions help you to create your own surgical masks for healthcare professionals.

Need materials? Fill out the form at the bottom of this page to request a kit! We would be happy to support as many crafters as possible until supplies run out!

Surgical Mask Sewing Pattern logo

LAA employee with completed Surgical Mask on

materials to use for sewing graphicMaterials logo

sewing materials for surgical mask DIY

  • 100% Cotton Fabric – Cut (1) 10×16 inch rectangle and (2) 2×6 inch strips.
  • 4 pieces of 1/4 or 3/8-inch ribbons measuring 18 inches in length
  • Scissors or fabric cutter
  • Sewing machine
  • Iron
  • Cotton or Polyester sewing thread
  • Sewing pins or wonder clips

 

 

 

step 1 graphicTake your 100% Cotton fabric and cut (1) rectangle that is 10 inches wide and 16 inches long. Then cut (2) pieces of fabric into 2×6 inch strips.

cotton fabric surgical maskfabric pieces for DIY mask

step 2 graphicWith the front side of the fabric facing down (wrong side up), fold over 1/2 inch on the top and bottom (10-inch sides). Press and stitch across both folds.

fold over fabric to create stitchstitched fabric for surgical mask

step 3 graphicWith the wrong side up, fold the top and bottom edges to meet in the middle and use the iron to press.

step 3 diy surgical maskstep 3 diy face mask

step 4 graphicOn each side of the mask, make 3 pleats. Each pleat should be approximately 1 inch in size with the top two pleats folded down from the top and the bottom pleat folded up from the bottom. These should be centered in the mask, leaving 2-3 inches of flat fabric at the top and bottom of the pleats.

pleats in surgical maskblue and gold sewing machine graphic

step 5 graphicSew pleats into place.

sew pleats on surgical maskafter sewing pleats

step 6 graphicFold the lengthwise sides of the 2×6 edging material inwards at the middle and press.

fabric pieces for DIY maskedging material folded

step 7 graphicPlace the edging material with unfinished sides up and lay the mask front side down. Align the sides to the middle of the edging. Place the ribbon 1/2 inch from the edge corner, pin it into place, and sew across the stitching to hold everything in place.

sewing ribbon togethersewing ribbons to edging material

Step 8 GraphicFold the top and bottom edging pieces inwards, meeting in the middle. Be sure they cover the raw edges of the mask and ribbon (this may fold the mask inward as well).

edging finishededging sewn to mask

Step 9 graphicStitch both sides of the edging closed.

thread and craft dots

Step 10 graphicSew (2) 1-inch stitches, approximately 1/4 inch across the top of the mask, so a pipe cleaner can be inserted if desired.

pipe cleaner pocketfinal step DIY surgical masks

Voila graphic

pink mask with multicolored dots graphic

Be sure to finish the ends of your ribbons in some form of fashion. We recommend the quickest approach of safely using a lighter to burn and cauterize the ends. You can also simply roll the ends and stick across.

 

LAA employee with DIY surgical face mask on

And there you have it! DIY Surgical Masks for healthcare professionals & beyond!

If you would like to request a surgical mask kit to be delivered or picked up from one of our Lane & Associates dental offices, please fill out the form below. Thank you, craft enthusiasts and healthcare professionals, for everything you continue to do for those in need during COVID-19!

Ear Savers for Surgical Masks

UPDATE: An increasing need as of June 2020 is ear-savers for essential workers wearing masks.

Wearing masks throughout an entire day causes stress on the ears leading to headaches and rubbing of sensitive skin. We would love to help use any materials we still have to also create ear-savers for these essential workers. If you would like to request ear-saver sewing kits to contribute, please fill out the same form below.

Here is a great link with instructions on how to sew ear-savers for masks for reference! You can also check out the instructions provided by UNC Healthcare on their ‘Ways to Help page.

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We wanted to take a moment to not only applaud our staff that continues to see emergency cases but also our staff who are unable to spend time with the patients they love to see and help. 

Many of our doctors and hygienists are either coming into our offices on a case-by-case basis or signing on for full days of urgent care patients. Unfortunately, others must stay home or reduce their hours due to exposure to themselves or family members & also at the orders of our government for elective dental procedures to cease. 

Here are three stories from our doctors and hygienists. We asked each how their life has changed during the COVID-19 Pandemic and these were their responses. 

Dr. Matt Miller, Sedation Dentist at Lane & Associates Family Dentistry

Dr. Matt Miller in PPE during COVID-19

“I graduated from the University of Iowa College of Dentistry in 2007, completed a General Practice Residency at Naval Medical Center Portsmouth in 2008, and three years of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at Naval Medical Center San Diego. I was the infectious disease control officer for three years at the Naval Branch Health Clinic Kings Bay, Kings Bay Georgia.  I have knowledge and training in the etiology and ramifications of infectious diseases, in addition to having first-hand knowledge and a greater understanding during my time in Haiti after the earthquake in 2010. 

I thought I had seen a lot in my career, but the COVID-19 Pandemic was not something I was prepared to fight.  As more and more reports came in on my fellow North Carolinians contracting the virus and the death toll rising, I knew I would soon have to prepare myself and my family for what was to come. I am on Humira which is an immunosuppressive drug, which puts me at increased risk. 

When the decision came from Dr. Lane and his wife that it was no longer safe to provide treatment other than emergent many thoughts came to mind; how are my patients going to get the care they need, if I volunteer to treat emergency patients knowing that I am at higher risk would I become infected or infect my family and how am I going to provide for my family. I knew from my training that this virus was not going to resolve quickly and knew that I needed to come up with a game plan to protect myself, my family and my surgical team while using my knowledge and training to help the Lane & Associate patients with their emergent needs.  

I spoke with Dr. Lane and my personal doctor and decided to forgo the Humira and treat patients. My team and I first made sure that we were all healthy and able to treat patients. Our practice developed protocols to screen patients to ensure they were healthy to treat and that their need was emergent and weighed the risk vs. benefit.  Staff was reduced and we practiced social distancing when possible as ordered by our Governor. From a personal standpoint other than forgoing the Humira, I increased my normal personal protective equipment by using an N95 mask.

I became a dentist to help others maintain and improve their oral health and improve their quality of life, and feel it is my obligation to treat emergent patients at this current time.” 

Learn more about Dr. Miller here | Find out ways we are helping during COVID-19

Dr. Huyen-Chau Dunn, Board Certified Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon in Raleigh and Durham

Dr. Dunn during COVID-19

“I am a board-certified Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon who attended dental school at New York University and then accomplished my oral surgery residency within the Air Force.  I have trained for protection against chemical warfare in protective (MOPP 4) gear for hours at end, I have flown in an F-16, I have accomplished long surgeries to debride and reconstruct soldiers wounded in war or patients with pathology, I have extracted more teeth than I can count and even replaced some of them with dental implants, but the challenge I face now is staying at home.  

Because of the ongoing pandemic, I have limited my practice to only treating emergent/urgent cases to help alleviate our already overtaxed emergency departments nationwide.  As such, I have been doing postoperative follow-ups and evaluations of potential emergency cases via video conferences with patients. Granted, teledentistry is limited in that I cannot touch the patient for a thorough examination, but it lets me determine if I need to bring the patient into the office for potential treatment versus conservative medical management.  

On a personal level, I have great respect for stay-at-home moms/dads, which is essentially what I have become.  The challenge is creating a routine for my 10-year-old daughter, Mai, and some form of normalcy while my husband, who is an emergency medicine physician working tirelessly on the “frontlines” of this pandemic to care for the sick and dying.  We do online schoolwork and music lessons with her piano teacher. Things that I normally did alone in the past for the sake of time efficiency, I now accomplish with her; we prepare meals and bake treats to distribute to neighbors, laundry, cleaning, gardening/mowing, but we also do fun things like art, board games, watch movies, take walks, and play with our dogs.  Whatever we do, we take time to enjoy each other’s company.” 

Find out more about Dr. Dunn here | Visit our COVID-19 Updates page

Crystal Jackson, Hygienist from Lane & Associates Fuquay-Varina

Hygienist with family during COVID-19

“To my wonderful patients,

I hope you all are staying safe, healthy, and finding lots to do at home. I miss you all so much. I was really looking forward to seeing some of you in March and April. This pandemic has changed so much for so many of us and I pray it is over sooner than expected. Until we can see each other again, remember to practice excellent home care as we often talk about. 

Some Tips during COVID-19:

  1. Brush 2x a day for 2 minutes.
  2. Floss daily and continue to use a fluoride mouth rinse daily! 
  3. Change your toothbrush every 3-4 months. If you get sick, change your toothbrush immediately! 
  4. Try to keep hydrated with only water throughout the day to keep your sugar intake down and your teeth happy.

My family and I are doing well, thankfully we are all healthy and trying to do our part by staying home. Except for visiting the grocery store, we have been home! Lots of cooking, cleaning, and playing outside has taken place. I really miss going out to eat, cookouts with friends, watching my boys play baseball, and their school! Today we started virtual school with my fourth and second grader and it went pretty well, so thankful for amazing teachers. Every afternoon I have a video chat with my 4 best friends and that has been so nice as we are helping each other get through this. I encourage you to have a video chat with a friend or two. 🙂

I cannot wait to see my patients again soon and find out how you all are doing during this challenging time. I think about you often! We will get through this. I am dreaming about the day I can go back to work to treat my patients and the boys’ school opens back up. Although, I am sure I miss their school more than they do. Haha

I love you all. Looking forward to seeing you soon. Stay safe!

Sending many prayers!

Your Dental Hygienist”

Learn more about Lane & Associates during COVID-19 | Contact our offices

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