Dentists in Tennessee may perform non-emergency services starting May 6, and one Nashville dentist says state officials have imposed clear guidelines for him and his staff to follow.
But, for now, Tennessee Department of Health spokeswoman Shelley Walker said state officials gave Wednesday, May 6, as the start date for a reason. She said the Tennessee Dental Association, the Tennessee Dental Hygienist Association, and the Tennessee Board of Dentistry must continue working on a safe reopening and practice.
Staff for Gov. Bill Lee did not return The Tennessee Star’s request for comment on the matter Thursday.
Nashville dentist Jeremy Elliott said he has received the new guidelines that state officials have already imposed.
“We originally thought we would start on Monday, and then we found out it would be Wednesday before we returned back to work. We are seeing the people who need to get in before something turns into a worst-case-scenario, but we are still not business as usual,” Elliott said.
“So we have been seeing emergency patients, but we are anticipating what the new norm will be. We are proceeding with caution. There is a lot of unknown at this time. My thoughts are ‘What will it be like a month from now? Six months from now? What are we exposed to?’ Those are my thoughts. There are a lot of questions without a lot of answers right now.”
Elliott’s staff emailed their clients Thursday with new guidelines.
They include the following:
• Staff will check and record temperatures twice daily on all team members to ensure none of them has a fever. Each team member will also have to answer a series of questions to verify they are not experiencing any symptoms.
• Staff will take each patient’s temperature prior to entering the practice. Any readings of 100.4 or higher will result in rescheduling. Each patient will also have to verify that they are not experiencing any Covid-19 symptoms nor been around anyone who has tested positive.
• Staff will wear additional layers of protective equipment such as N-95 mask, gowns, face-shields, and hats.
• Staff will have each patient rinse with a disinfecting mouth rinse prior to their appointment.
• To maintain social distancing, staff will limit the number of people in the office to 10, including staff members.
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Chris Butler is an investigative journalist at The Tennessee Star. Follow Chris on Facebook. Email tips to [email protected].
