|
| |
Dental Hygiene
Standards
|
|
At Doctor's Dental Clinic we
maintain strict responsibility to disinfect impressions and laboratory-made
items even if the commercial dental laboratory carries out its own hygiene
measures. After treatment of each patient and at the completion of daily work
activities, countertops and dental unit surfaces should be cleaned using an appropriate
cleaning agent and water. Surfaces then should be disinfected with
a suitable chemical germicide and disposable toweling.
Single-use disposable instruments
(e.g., prophylaxis angles; prophylaxis cups and brushes; tips for high-speed air
evacuators, saliva ejectors, and air/water syringes) should be used for one
patient only and discarded appropriately. These items are neither designed
nor intended for reuse.
|
|
|
|
|
|
The following are the hygiene
standards strictly followed at Doctor's Dental Clinic
-
Protective attire and barrier
techniques
-
Sterilization or disinfection
of instruments
-
Cleaning and disinfection of
dental unit and environmental surfaces
-
Disinfection of hand pieces,
antiretraction valves, and other intra-oral dental devices attached to air and
water lines of dental unit.
-
Single-use disposable
instruments and gloves
-
Implementation of recommended
infection-control practices for dentist
As with other medical and surgical instruments,
dental instruments are classified as following depending on their risk of
transmitting infection and the need to sterilize them between uses. Each dental
practice should classify all instruments as follows:
-
Surgical and other instruments
used to penetrate soft tissue or bone are classified as critical and should be
sterilized after each use. These devices include forceps, scalpels, bone
chisels, scalers, and burs.
-
Instruments such as mirrors and
amalgam condensers that do not penetrate soft tissues or bone but contact oral
tissues are classified as semicritical. These devices should be sterilized
after each use. If, however, sterilization is not feasible because the
instrument will be damaged by heat, the instrument should receive, at a
minimum, high-level disinfection.
|
|
