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 some 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. Huyen-Chau Dunn, Board Certified Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon in Raleigh and Durham
“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
“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:
- Brush 2x a day for 2 minutes.
- Floss daily and continue to use a fluoride mouth rinse daily!
- Change your toothbrush every 3-4 months. If you get sick, change your toothbrush immediately!
- 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
