I had the privilege of presenting a seminar to the clients of Henry Schein Dental, topic “Dental Practice Act”. The seminar was held at their new facility located at 3900 Atherton Rd, Suite 100, Rocklin, CA. Great turn out and support, the Henry Schein team was fantastic!

Q: We get children who have problems with keeping the x-ray sensor in their mouth because of gagging or discomfort. A staff member  is required to stay in the room with the patient and hold the sensor in place while another staff member presses the button to take the x-ray. The staff has discussed concerns about radiation exposure with the employer, the employer suggest that we wear a radiation apron when in the room while holding the sensor. Is this safe?

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!

If you received “OSHA” training, you only received five percent of the needed information to be compliant and reduce risk to yourself and patients. OSHA training is not,

• The Dental Practice Act
• Sterilization
• Patient Safety
• Dental Board Infection Control
• HIPAA
• Radiation Safety
• Environmental Heath Management
• Human Recourses

Dental Professionals must look beyond the “OSHA mentality” and take responsibility to find out what they need in order to be competent in their duties. They also need to change their mindset from doing only the minimum to adding value in everything they do.

Before using chemical products or any product for that matter, first read the label. If you do not understand the instructions ask management before using the product. Take the time and steps necessary to be safe!

It is amazing how often I am asked “What’s new with OSHA?  When the question should be “What’s new with Dental Compliance?”

Why?  its simple; Dental Offices are regulated by more than OSHA, depending on the county and city your practice is located in; it can be as many as seven agencies!

However, if you look beyond your OSHA training and gain an understanding of the compliance makeup you will also gain an appreciation that compliance regulation is an essential part of your business operations, both in growing your practice and maintaining your practice, not to mention reducing financial risk. Today compliance has taken on a whole new meaning, it is no longer a back office issue; it is a “total” practice philosophy.  Compliance is good – good for the staff, good for the patient and good for the practice.  So think “Dental Compliance” and not just OSHA.

Assuming that new hires both experience and inexperienced know what to do to maintain the standard of your office is risky business. Take the time and orientate all new hires to the policies and procedures of your office and constantly test their understanding of your standard. I suggest conducting a New Employee Orientation for the first ten days of employment and longer if needed, the areas of focus should be patient safety, patient information security, infection control, OSHA, Consumer Affairs and office policies & procedures. The key to successfully maintaining a standard is making sure everyone is on the same page. By the way, employee training should be conducted a minimum of once a year and for maximum results onsite!

Training is a process that improves knowledge and skills and information is the key ingredient for all training. Information must be current, specific to the job, presented by a qualified instructor and conducted yearly. Reducing employee training or looking to cut training costs by doing it yourself is ludicrous. Investing in employee training will payoff many times over and it is a critical element for a Patient Compliant office!

Q: What governmental agencies are most likely to inspect our office?

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

Cosmetic and Family Dentistry – located at 827 Broadway, Suite 320, Oakland CA, 94607, Phone: 510.832.3713

Dr. Michael Tsotsiashvili and his great team of Dental Professionals knows what it takes to achieve and maintain a Patient Compliant office. “Excellence in Patient Safety and Infection Control” is not only the foundation of this office but should be etched on the door!

Visit Dr. Michael’s website: www.oldoaklanddental.com