{"id":580,"date":"2020-05-15T20:15:42","date_gmt":"2020-05-15T20:15:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hillavenuedental.com\/blog\/?p=580"},"modified":"2020-05-27T21:23:53","modified_gmt":"2020-05-27T21:23:53","slug":"dentist-during-covid-19-infection-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hillavenuedental.com\/blog\/dentist-during-covid-19-infection-control\/","title":{"rendered":"Hand Hygiene: How Dentists Protect Their Patients During COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"AIt\u2019s clear that dentists and their team members practice consistent hand-washing throughout the day and wear gloves to prevent the spread of germs and diseases in the dental office. However, in the age of the current pandemic, it\u2019s understandable if you initially have second thoughts about visiting a dentist during COVID-19.<\/a> The good news is that dental offices are actually one of the safest places you can be in during a pandemic. Here\u2019s how dentists are taking additional precautions to protect you and your family when you need your dental treatments completed.<\/p>\n

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Personal Hand Hygiene<\/h2>\n

The standards for personal hand hygiene include washing hands with soap and water as well as utilizing alcohol-based hand rubs (specifically products that contain at least 60 percent alcohol) several times throughout the day. However, it also means removing jewelry, which includes wrist watches. It\u2019s also important to keep fingernails trimmed to about \u00bc of an inch and neatly filed with no sharp edges of any kind. Long or fake fingernails are not permitted as they can easily transfer bacteria. For protecting the skin barrier, hand creams and lotions are also utilized after hand washing or using alcohol-based rubs (both of which can dry out the skin.)<\/p>\n

Hand washing is especially important:<\/p>\n