Your Mount Pearl Invisalign® Provider
Do you have a dental emergency during COVID-19?
While so much of our daily lives have been impacted, at least one thing remains consistent throughout the COVID-19 pandemic for patients and dentists: dental emergencies.
But how do you handle a dental emergency safely during these times, while respecting social distancing guidelines? Today, we’ll share a few tips.
Define your emergency
The first thing you need to do is determine whether or not your oral health issue is a dental emergency that requires a dentist's immediate attention. If you are experiencing any of the following things, contact us as soon as possible.
- Sensitive teeth
- Chipped, broken or knocked out tooth
- Toothache that you cannot remedy yourself with over-the-counter pain medication
- Lost crowns or fillings
- Ulcers in your mouth
- Sore or bleeding gums
- Severe swelling on your face, neck or mouth
New Rules & Regulations Under COVID-19
If you are visiting our office for a dental emergency, you may notice that it looks a bit different than it does normally. There are protocols and precautions in place to help keep our patients and staff safe.
If you have a dental emergency, you can rest assured that we equipped to manage it safely. Learn more about our COVID-19 protocols here.
How should I handle a dental emergency during a global pandemic such as COVID-19?
By this point, we are all familiar with pandemic safety rules and social distancing, but how does this translate into your experience at your dentist's office? Here a few things you can do before and during your emergency appointment to ease the process:
Before Your Appointment
Locate the lost tooth. If you’ve lost a tooth, try to locate it and rinse it with water. Hold the tooth in the socket it fell out of, or place it in a container of milk. Your dentist may be able to attach it.
Contact us early. Don’t hesitate to call if you are experiencing a dental emergency. We can provide advice over the phone and get you in as soon as possible. Bookmark this post, or type "dentist near me" into your favourite search engine and our information will likely pop up.
Apply ice. Hold an ice pack or cold compress to the affected area.
Answer screening questions. When you contact our office, your dentist or their staff will ask you pre-screening questions to learn whether you have any COVID-19 symptoms. If you do, we can refer you to another office or make alternate arrangements.
During Your Appointment
Wear a face mask and use hand sanitizer. Wearing a face mask and using 70 to 90 percent alcohol-based hand sanitizer upon entering or leaving the building are two precautions to take.
Attend your appointment alone. Plan to attend your appointment alone (exceptions are made for children or people who require assistance).
Respect social distancing guidelines. We will get you an appointment as soon as possible. If you do need to wait in the waiting room, you’ll find chairs spaced 2 metres apart. There will be no magazines or other non-essential items as we try to reduce the number of touchable surfaces.
Dentists will wear protective gear. In addition to surgical face masks, your dentist and their staff will wear personal protective equipment during in-person appointments.
Pay via touchless payment. Plan to pay any balance owing on your appointment with your credit card or debit card.