June 3, 2020
Dear Patients,
You may have heard that the Provincial Government announced earlier this week that Directive #2 has been amended to permit health care professions to return to practice. Essentially, this means that all dental services can gradually resume under the direction of the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario and based on measures that must be in place before in-person services can resume. The RCDSO along with the Ontario Dental Association and the College of Dental Hygienists of Ontario are working tirelessly to provide us with the necessary guidelines, procedures and protocols to be able to return to practice
By now I’m sure most of us have cleaned, purged, organized, folded and labelled everything in our homes to a standard that even Marie Kondo would praise us for. Now, it's time for us to do the same in our office. Although we would love to open our clinic doors and get back to seeing all of you, there are some major changes that we will have to make before we can do that. Once we receive our finalized Return to Work directive we can then make the physical changes to our office that are required. We are working on getting new barriers installed, air cleaners and even high volume suction units, which Dr. Shields has nicknamed the "Ghost Buster" – you will all understand when you see it!!!
We are also working on accessing the PPE necessary to keep you and our staff safe. We kindly donated our supply of PPE to front line workers when the pandemic first hit and as most of you know demand for PPE has been extremely high during these last few months. We have placed orders, but shipments are delayed as the supply and demand increase.
As of now our clinic remains closed and our return to work date is still unknown. We can assure you that we are eager to get back to work, but not before we can provide a safe environment for our patients and our staff.
We will keep you all updated, and we hope to see you all very soon, although you may not recognize us with our new "uniforms"
Dentistry in the Beach
** It's been almost 3 months since the closure so it's time to replace you toothbrushes!! Remember soft or extra soft is always best! **
May 8, 2020
The Covid-19 crisis has caused all dental clinics (us included) to temporarily stop offering regularly scheduled hygiene appointments as well as other needed dental procedures until further notice. While there are a limited amount of clinics offering strict urgent care for dental emergencies only, it is important that we must not neglect our oral health while at home. Prevention is the key to not having to visit a dentist for any emergencies. It is uncertain, at this time, when things will be back to normal, and when everyone will have access to all dental services, so we must ensure that we are taking care of our oral health during this period.
Here are a few tips to maintaining proper oral hygiene while at home:
- Brush your teeth 2-3 times a day with toothpaste containing fluoride. Place your toothbrush at a 45 degree angle to the gums and gently massage back and forth while sweeping the brush vertically towards the tongue in order to “sweep” the bacteria and food away from the gums. Don’t forget to brush your tongue!
Tip - run the bristles of your brush under hot water for 30 seconds to soften the bristles before brushing. When you are done brushing, run them under hot water again to help reduce bacteria on your brush. - Floss your teeth at least once a day. Before bedtime is best to ensure the "sugar bugs" are not working their magic at night while sleeping. If you have wider spaces between the teeth, you can place a knot in your floss to help remove the deposits from in between the teeth.
Tip- floss before brushing to ensure the fluoride from your toothpaste gets between the teeth. - Use an electric toothbrush and/or waterpik if possible. These electronic devices do the work for you and also promote gum health. If you don’t have either of these- don’t stress. Manual toothbrushes and traditional floss are fine when proper technique is used – refer to point #1
- Gargle with an alcohol –free mouthrinse. This will help reduce the amount of bacteria in your mouth
- Eat healthy- avoid eating and drinking sugary foods and beverages. These can contribute to the cavity process and potentially cause problems. Drink plenty of water to wash away acids and food deposits from your mouth
We hope these tips are useful to you and we look forward to seeing you again real soon in our office and being able to take care of your dental needs.
Stay safe and stay positive!!
Dentistry in the Beach
April 28, 2020
TIPS ON FIXING DENTAL EMERGENCIES FROM HOME
NOTE: These are guideline suggestions. If you have any swelling, bleeding, oral-facial trauma or pain that cannot be controlled, please reach out to us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
As you already know, we at Dentistry in the Beach have been mandated to temporarily close our clinic doors during the Covid-19 Pandemic. We understand that dental emergencies can arise during this time are doing our best to offer virtual consults (free of charge) to our patients when needed, otherwise known as 'teledentisrty'. We are also assessing emergencies and referring patients to any necessary dental specialists when possible.
In emergency cases, Dr Shields is able to refer patients to specialists dealing with dental emergencies during this pandemic. Their offices have been equipped with the necessary procedures, protocols and personal protective equipment needed to treat emergencies at this time.
We have created some guidelines for patients to be able to handle ‘emergencies’ safely at home with products that can be found either in your home or can be purchased from your local drug store.
NOTE: if you are experiencing any swelling, bleeding, oral-facial trauma or pain that cannot be controlled, please reach out to us and we will get back to you as soon as possible.
Jaw pain from clenching or grinding – at home mouth guards can be purchased from you local drug store. They do not by any means replace a custom made night guard, but they will provide temporary relief until you are able to be fitted for a custom guard.
Removing something stuck in your gums or in between the teeth – tie a knot (or double knot) in a piece of dental floss. Place the untied portion between the teeth and gently pull the knot through the contact in order to scrape the foreign body out from under the gumline. If you have a waterpick at home, this can also be used to "flush" the foreign body out.
Suspicious mouth ulcer or lesion - cover the lesion with baking soda paste daily until gone (baking soda and a bit of warm water mixed to a paste), rinse with warm saltwater 2-3 times daily or purchasing Amosan at your local drug store (call ahead as not all drug stores carry this) and rising with this daily.
Chipped tooth leaving a jagged edge - cover the exposed area with dental wax which can be found at most drug stores. If necessary, gently file down the rough spots using a clean nail file. Call us if you are experiencing sensitivity or pain from the chip. Once we are able to re-open schedule an appointment with us to assess and treat the area.
Lost fillings - Brush area with toothpaste and warm water to remove all food and bacteria deposits and cover the area with Temparin (can be purchased on Amazon) until you can see a dentist.
Lost crown – use the open end of a clean paperclip to remove any old cement from the inside of the crown and the tooth. Squeeze a few drops of Fixodent denture adhesive into the crown and place back on the tooth. Double check ahead of time that you are placing it the correct way on the tooth as it will not sit on the tooth properly if not. Your back teeth should be able to come together when biting down. NOTE: If the crown has not come off clean, meaning if the tooth underneath has broken or chipped - DO NOT re-cement it at home. Please contact us as you may need to see an emergency dentist.
These are strictly temporary guidelines and we do suggest scheduling an appointment with us as soon as the restrictions have been lifted.
Please do not hesitate to reach out to us via email of phone and one of us will reach out to you.
Dentistry in the Beach
April 15, 2020
SORRY WE'RE STILL CLOSED!
Dear Patients,
In this time of uncertainty, we want you to know that even though our clinic doors remain closed, we are here (virtually) for you to support any dental emergencies you may have and make any necessary recommendations and/or referrals you may need.
For patients that cannot be controlled by pharmacological means, there are emergency clinics that are able to treat patients that:
- Have a true dental emergency.
- Have not been exposed or tested positive for COVID-19.
A True Dental Emergency - A "true dental emergency" includes oral-facial trauma, significant infection, and/or prolonged bleeding or pain, which cannot be managed by over-the-counter medications. Each case is different, I will use my clinical and professional judgement to determine what constitutes emergency services.
The Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario has recommended that all non-emergency dental services should be postponed to help prevent the spread of COVID-19.
If you think you have an emergency case, call and leave us a message, or email the office at [email protected]. One of us will get back to you and will ask you for information about your situation and give you advice about next steps. If you have a true dental emergency and need to visit an emergency dental clinic, we will direct you to an available clinic.
Do not go to a hospital emergency room for a dental problem at this time.
On the advice of the Chief Medical Officer along with the approval of the Ontario legislature, the State of Emergency has been extended until May 12th. All dental appointments scheduled between now and Friday May 15th have been cancelled. We continue to monitor the Covid-19 situation and will continue to communicate any important information in regards to patient treatment via email as soon as we have then information. Once the clinic re-opens, we will be contacting all patients with cancelled appointments to reschedule.
We hope that you are all staying safe and healthy and continue to do your part in helping to bend the curve in the spread of Covid-19 by practicing self isolation, social distancing, and proper hygiene measures.
We look forward to being able to see our patients in our clinic as soon as possible.
Stay Safe Everyone,
Dr. Kathryn Shields and Staff of Dentistry in the Beach
March 26, 2020
OFFICE CLOSED
Dear Patients,
The health and safety of our patients, staff and community is of the upmost importance to us. Due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, and in accordance with the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) along with the government of Ontario, we have suspended ALL dental treatment effective immediately and our office will remain closed until further notice. The RCDSO has advised that they will NOT revisit these recommendations of suspensions until the State of Emergency has been lifted by the Government of Ontario.
In keeping with this important protocol, any dental appointments you may have scheduled in the upcoming days/weeks will be cancelled until further notice. Should you require EMERGENCY DENTAL services, please leave us a message or email and someone from our office will get back to you on how to deal with your dental emergency.
We will continue to closely monitor and evaluate the COVID-19 situation as it continues to unfold. We will also be communicating any information we may have, in regards to patient treatment , through email as soon as we have the information.
We value your patience during these difficult times and encourage everyone to do their part in curtailing the spread of COVID-19 by follow directions from Health Canada and all local authorities in regards to self-isolation, social distancing and of course proper hygiene measures.
Stay Safe Everyone,
Dr. Kathryn Shields and Staff of Dentistry in the Beach