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.

When it comes to dental compliance do you listen to those who know or do you listen to those who sell?

When choosing a seminar or compliance service you should select on the bases of getting quality how-to information from an expert, the kind of information and expertise that produces results and moves your office forward. Stop listening to those who sell gimmicks and produce nothing but BS.  This choice will cost you many times over in fines, citations, and litigation. Remember these two life teachings – “if it sounds too good to be true, it isn’t” and “you get what you paid for”

Q: Should my hygienists attend your seminar, they feel it is unnecessary since they get OSHA training at their other office they work at.

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.

I am very busy working with new clients who had requested my services because their practice was inspected by OSHA or the Dental Board and the results were not favorable.  In the process of bringing these dental offices into compliance I discovered something they all had in common, they all had some type of compliance services or product which they relied on but apparently failed.  Here is the list,

1. Online OSHA training
2. OSHA training videos
3. OSHA monthly newsletter service
4. Attend dental associations seminars & conventions
5. OSHA training provided by a dental supply representative
6. OSHA training provided by their waste management company
7. Compliance Manuals which they download from a dental association
8. Compliance Manuals provided by their waste management company
9. Service from compliance service companies who guaranteed to pay any fines

Dental compliance training is a hands-on, show me learning process that should be conducted in your office by an expert.

Q:  Is it true that the Dental Board of California only accepts Continuing Education Certificates that are issued by Registered Providers?

A:  YES – the Dental Board only approves Continuing Education Certificates that are issued by Registered Providers who are registered with the Dental Board of California.  I suggest making sure by checking out the provider by asking for their RP number and going to the Dental Board’s License Verification website: www.dbc.ca.gov/verification/license_verification.shtml

A good place to find resources for online and correspondence courses is the Dental Board’s website: www.dbc.ca.gov/licensees/cont_education.shtml

Q: Do I need to provide training for my staff every two years?

A: You must provide staff training when a need occurs, like using new chemicals, equipment, etc. or as new staff is added.  In addition you should conduct update training when regulations are released or revised, like the Table of Permitted Duties which changes twice a year and the Dental Board Infection Control Regulations which is revised yearly.  In OSHA’s case, the minimum staff training is yearly, the key topics are: Bloodborne Pathogens Standard, Injury & Illness Prevention, and Hazard Communications.

New Dental Assistant Requirement for California

Beginning January 1, 2010 and after, newly employed Dental Assistants must complete a 2-hours Dental Practice Act course and a 8-hours Dental Board Infection Control Regulations course which 4-hours is clinical training, possess a current valid CPR card within 12 months of their employment in order to remain employed as a Dental Assistant. For clarity a Dental Assistant is a non-licensed assistant who performs clinical duties which include sterilization, assisting the dentist, operatory break-downs and set-ups, etc., also a Dental Assistant maybe formally trained by completing a dental  assisting program or totally trained on the job. Something to keep in mind, the above requirements are not normally included in dental assisting programs so the employee will have to attend additional seminars 0r workshops at their own expense.

Q: I am an RDA and my employer has placed me in charge of OSHA compliance for the office, however I do not feel I have the knowledge or expertise and the time to spend on compliance duties in addition to my RDA duties. I talked with my employer about this but he doesn’t seem to understand my frustration, is there anything I can do?

A: Your dilemma is common among most dental offices, your employer is taking the “cheap” way and not the “smart” way to patient and staff safety. OSHA regulations are complex, add in the requirements of the Dental Board, Department of Health Services, City, County and Federal like HIPAA and the complexity multiplies. Staying compliant is NOT a part time responsibility therefore you can’t be doing it part time. Since the main “hat” you wear is that of a RDA, you can’t expect or be expected to, be on top of regulatory requirements. Your employer like most Dentists needs to get serious about patient and staff safety by stop looking at it as a “cost” rather than a “critical” part of business. After all, without patient safety you have nothing to offer your patients or set your office apart from the others. Bottom line, if your employer hasn’t’ “got it” he or she never will, so do your very best.