Information About Our Covid-19 Precautions

We have posted visual alerts (e.g. signs, posters) at the entrance and in strategic locations (e.g. waiting areas, elevators, cafeterias) to provide patients and dental clinic staff with instructions (in required languages) on hand hygiene, respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette.

Instructions include how to use tissue paper/towels to cover the nose and mouth when coughing or sneezing, how to dispose of tissue/towels and contaminated materials in waste containers, and how and when to practice hand hygiene.

At our clinic entrance, waiting rooms, and patient records, we have provided materials for respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette, including alcohol-based hand rub (ABHR) with 60-95% alcohol, tissue paper/towels, and non-woven bins and non-touch outlets for waste.

Evaluation of Patients at the Time of Appointment

The pre-control staff asks patients about their health status, contact or travel history while making an appointment by phone.

Our patient relations officer encourages the patient who enters the waiting area to use hand disinfectant first, the patient`s travel history is questioned and the temperature is measured. (Those who or their relatives were in the epidemic area 14 days ago and those who came from abroad constitute the risk group).

Relatives of adult patients who do not require care should not enter the waiting area. The waiting area is disinfected frequently and the environment should be ventilated. By keeping appointment intervals long, patient contact in waiting areas is minimized. We do not keep newspapers and magazines that will increase hand contact in the waiting areas during the pandemic.

Patients who will be admitted to the dental unit area are first asked to read and sign the informed consent form. The Patient Anamnesis form is filled in by the physician in detail.

The Patient Anamnesis form includes information about the epidemic region or travel abroad 2 weeks before, and information about influenza and fever in the recent past.

Aseptic rules are followed during patient treatment. Before the patient sits in the unit, sterilized gauze pads, instruments, tools and equipment, and a cup in which the dirty waste will be placed next to the sterile instruments are prepared by packing.

Before the procedure, we give mouthwash containing 1% hydrogen peroxide or 0.2% povidone iodine to the patients.

Hand hygiene is provided by the physician (hand rubbing or hand washing with alcohol-based hand antiseptic).

• Hand hygiene is performed before and after all patient contact, including before hand contact with infectious material and before wearing gloves.
• Hand hygiene after removing PPE is particularly important to remove pathogens that may have been transferred to bare hands during the removal process.
• Personal protective equipment; The physician uses personal protective equipment such as gowns, masks, goggles, protective shields and gloves to protect the skin and mucous membranes during the removal process.
• Hand hygiene is done by using 60-95% alcohol-based hand sanitizer or by washing hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds.

Mask;

• A mask or face mask is put on before entering the patient room or care area.
• Face masks, surgical masks, or N95 masks that offer a higher level of protection are used when performing an aerosol generating procedure or during the examination.
• Disposable respirators and face masks are removed and discarded after leaving the patient`s room or care area and closing the door. Hand hygiene is practiced after discarding the mask or face mask.

Eye Protection;

• Eye protection (glasses or a disposable face shield that covers the front and sides of the face) is worn at the entrance to the patient room or care area.

Glove;

• Clean gloves are worn at the entrance to the patient room or care area.
• Torn or contaminated gloves are changed immediately.
• When leaving the patient`s room or care area, gloves are removed and hand hygiene is applied immediately.