COVID-19 Information

Coronavirus and COVID-19 have had a huge impact on Dentistry and it is our responsibility to be vigilant and do our best to protect our patients and staff from the virus.

To do this we have made a number of changes to how we operate at The Saltash Dental Surgery:

1. We are following Government guidance on social distancing and other measures.

  • Patients are encouraged to wear facial coverings/masks when they attend the surgery.
  • Fewer people are permitted in the waiting room.
  • You may have to attend appointments by yourself where practical.
  • You may have to wait outside until we allow you to enter the building.
  • You may have to wait in your car until we telephone you to let you know you can enter the building.
  • We will ask you to wash your hands before and after entry to reception and the surgeries.
  • You may be asked to use an antimicrobial mouthwash before your treatment.

2. We are screening patients and staff for signs of Covid-19 on a daily basis.

  • You may have your temperature taken when you attend for your appointment.
  • You may be asked questions about whether you have any symptoms of Covid-19.

3. We will be wearing advanced PPE (Personal Protective Equipment).

  • We will be wearing extra gowns, masks, hair coverings and shoe coverings.
  • This may make us look a bit strange and alarming, but this keeps both you and us safe from spreading or catching the virus.

4. We are keeping our staff safe.

  • The receptionists will have plastic screens in front of them at the reception desk.
  • You will be asked to pay for your treatment with a payment card if possible, to reduce the handling of money.

5. We are taking measures to reduce aerosols in the surgeries.

  • Covid-19 can spread in droplets and so we want to reduce the number of droplets we produce in the surgery when we do dental procedures.
  • For example, your teeth cleaning may be done by hand instruments rather than with the water scaler.
  • We may use a rubber sheet, called rubber dam, that goes over your tooth when we are drilling, so we can suction up as many droplets as possible.
  • Extra time will be given between appointments to allow the air droplets to settle before we do our usual high standard of cleaning and disinfecting between patients. This means we have to stagger appointments.

6. We have invested in air purifiers to clean the air in the building.

  • We have installed air purifiers that remove 99% of airborne allergens.
  • These have a UV-C feature that kills bacteria and viruses.