With Ontario moving into stage two of their reopening process – a Huntsville dentist is happy to see his clients starting to return.
In an interview with MyMuskokaNow, Dr. Shervin Rowshani of Huntsville’s Dairy Lane Dental says it’s great to finally be back to operating – even if it’s under unique circumstances with precautionary health measures in place.
Rowshani says the biggest change for patients will be the way they are able to book appointments.
“There are a lot of questions that need to be asked at the time of booking the appointment and at the time of showing up for the appointment. The inability of walking in is a major change, you have to call, and the doors are locked. The guidelines suggest that everybody comes in one at a time.”
Practices have been closed since mid-March after the province shut down all non-essential and elective health services.
As a result, Rowshani says they’ve had ample time to prepare for their reopening.
“A lot of things that are new to the general public, we’ve been using. The gloves, the masks, the shields, the gowns – they’ve all been a part of the conversation. The sterilization of dental offices, I’d say they are some of the most sterile settings you can have outside of maybe operating rooms and stuff.”
Patients will be screened upon entering practices and be expected to answer questions that include if they’ve been out of the country for the last 14 days or if they’ve been in contact with someone who has COVID-19.
Rowshani adds the biggest point that needs to be clarified is that if you screen positive – meaning if you’ve been out of the country or been in contact with a case – it does not mean they can’t serve you.
“Those individuals that are COVID screen positive, we can still see them under certain circumstances. Doors need to be closed, and that’s when we’d use the N-95 masks, but it doesn’t mean that someone has actually COVID-tested positive.”
The Ontario Dental Association has a list of guidelines for practices reopening on its website.