Safety and cleanliness in our office

In light of recent events in Tulsa Oklahoma, concerning an oral surgeon who possibly infected thousands of patients due to unsanitary practices, we wanted to take a moment to address this issue and give you, our patients and readers, peace of mind.

As I'm sure most of you have hear by now, due to all the media coverage this story is getting, about the incident that all started out of one dental office in Tulsa, OK. An oral surgeon and his staff were practicing unsanitary cleaning methods and therefor were non compliant with health codes. 

Here's a link to learn a little more about the story if you don't already know:
http://youtu.be/T4x3DV0l0Sc
As reported by the Associated Press

Our hearts go out to the over 7,000 patients that might have been infected after visiting this practice.  What happened cannot be undone, and thankfully the number offices who might not be following the rules 100% is greatly outweighed by the number of offices who do take pride in the cleanliness of their office and the safety protocols they follow.

Here at Weissman Dental we uphold the strictest sterilization steps for your safety and we will never compromise your care. We want to keep you safe and our protocols current.  There are daily, weekly, monthly and annual tests, and maintenance procedures we follow.  From decontaminating the operatories where you receive your care, sterilization of the instruments that we use, to the maintenance of all our equipment.

The United States Department of Labor has an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) that sets strict guidelines for us to follow concerning the well-being of our patients; and is enforced by random inspections. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also has recommendations that should be practiced concerning "infection control", meaning how we keep ourselves and our office a clean and sterile environment. You can read more about what these organizations specifically do by clicking the following links:
http://www.osha.gov/
http://www.cdc.gov/oralhealth/infectioncontrol/

Weissman Dental doesn't just blindly follow the rules, we really take them to heart by staying up to date and on top of it.  We discuss new techniques and concerns at meetings, we have a staff member who is an OSHA coordinator in the office, and we have open dialogue with patients about any questions or concerns they may have. We here in the office have our dental work done here, and so do our friends and family and we want to make sure you are treated in the same safe manner with the highest quality of care as we want for ourselves and them.

So we challenge you, if you are a patient of ours and  you have questions, don't be afraid to ask them. If you have a different dentist, ask them these questions, and if they can't answer them then call our office and we would be happy to care for your needs and answer your questions. There is no need to fear the dentist, all we care about is your safety, health and happiness.

Weissman Dental