Pennsylvania Academy of General Dentistry (PAGD) National Trustee Dr. Richard Knowlton, DMD, MAGD, today released the following statement regarding the risk of infection, considering the recent warning by the PA Department of Health for patients treated by a York general dentist:
“Infection control, safety and proper management of hazardous materials in dental offices are critical and basic to patient care. Dentists are required to establish and follow protocols mandated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), but unfortunately in very rare instances lapses in protocol can lead to an incident like the one in York.
“Patients should be encouraged to ask questions about the safety measures put in place at their dental office so you feel confident that the standard of care, and the law, is being followed.”
PAGD has a fact sheet available for patients called “Protection from Infection” on its website, www.pagd.org. PAGD provides continuing education for dentists across the state on dental issues, including infection control. In addition, the US Department of Labor provides information through its website, www.osha.gov.
“The importance of infection control in dentistry can prevent transmission of infections among patients and dental healthcare workers,” Dr. Knowlton said. “OSHA mandates yearly training for all dental offices. In order for our dental teams to stay up dot date with the latest information, PAGD provides continuing education on this and many other topics.”