A: The dentist who puts the safety of both patients and employees ahead of profits. The dentist who is proactive when it comes to infection control. The dentist who sees value in yearly employee training. The dentist who’s standard is delivering the highest quality of care and the highest level of safety. Unfortunately only a very small percentage of dentists fit the profile!

A: NO it is not safe and it is a violation of OSHA, Department of Health Services and Consumers Affairs regulations. I would advise your employer to purchase the proper sensor for children, the cost would be cheap compared to the citations, fine and potential lawsuit by employees!

A: The courses needed to renew your license made mandatory by the Dental Board are the Dental Practice Act (2 hours) and the Dental Board Infection Control Regulations (2 hours) which neither are OSHA.

A: Universal Waste refers to items like batteries, fluorescent light tubes, neon bulbs, electronic devices, devices containing mercury, and non-empty aerosol cans containing hazardous materials to name a few. The California Universal Waste Rule makes it mandatory for businesses which includes dental offices to collect Universal Waste and dispose of it properly meaning either having your waste management service remove it or deposit the items at a collection center. Many cities are adding specific items to the list so it is best to check with the city which your dental office is located to find out what additional items are regulated. By regulations you cannot throw Universal Waste in the trash.

A: YES – if your compliance manual is written correctly and contains policies & procedures based upon all regulations and not just OSHA, then all you need to do is revise it as new requirements are released or working conditions change, at the minimum your compliance manual along with employee training is updated once a year.. With all due respect doctor, I evaluate about 55 dental offices each month and haven’t found one office with a correct compliance manual, what I have found was a lot of time and hard work put into a binder with incorrect results. Why would anyone attempt to take on a project that even experts find intimidating at times? If you think you are saving money I suggest you think again.

A: Although there are about seven agencies that are responsible for regulating dental offices, the top three and most active are,

1. OSHA
2. Consumer Affairs (Dental Board)
3. Department of Health Services

A:  YES – based upon the Medical Waste Management Act, most if not all counties in California require healthcare businesses that generate medical waste, i.e., sharps, biohazard wastes, etc., be registered with the Dept. of Health Services division of Environmental Health in the county which the practice is located.  A “Medical Waste Generator Permit” which has nothing to do with the EPA permit, will be issued once the registration process is completed.  Determine if a permit has been issued, if not, contact the Dept. of Health Services division of Environmental Health in your county (government pages of telephone book) and request an application packet.

A: I wonder what your hygienists tell the employer at the other office they work at???

There is a lot more to dental compliance than OSHA, in my seminar OSHA is only 5% of the material I present.. I am amazed why dentist leave out key employees in meetings, trainings or seminars then think their office is compliant and everyone is on the same page as a “team”. I am also amazed why dentists allow their hygienists to refuse to follow policies & procedures or do things their way – are they not EMPLOYEES and are you not the EMPLOYER, get it?

Hygienists, why do you feel that you are above everyone else in the office and that there is nothing new to learn because you have infinite intelligence? How do you expect to contribute to the standard of the office and be a team player when you are not even close to being on the right page?

Now before I start getting a ton of hate email let me clear something up, my comments ARE NOT directed to ALL hygienists, I have worked with some of the greatest hygienists in the profession, these people in my mind are TRUE healthcare professionals of the highest caliber, they know who they are and they make-up only 2% of the hygienists population.

Bottom line, in order to be a Patient Compliant office that provides “Excellence in Patient Safety and Infection Control” every member of the team MUST be pulling in the same direction. Every member must add value to what they do, be able to teach others by example and themselves be teachable.

A. YES – I only write compliance manuals for dental offices, email me and I will provide you with the details – tom@tomterryseminars.com

A: In most cases when an inspector from the Dental Board visits an office they are following-up on a compliant filled by a patient or staff member. There are other reasons why a dental office is inspected by the Dental Board like licensing issues, random compliance inspection, field audits, etc. The Dental Board inspectors have the authority given to them by regulations to inspect your office anytime during business hours.  The regulations do not specify that owners, managers, partners, etc. must be present during the inspection. By the way, based on the make-up of regulations the Dental Board has more regulations requirements for dental offices than OSHA!