Conduct an Infection Risk Assessment
It is essential that every healthcare facility implement a robust Infection prevention and control plan. The first step is taking an honest look at the reality in your office. You can use readily available resources to perform this comprehensive assessment.
To get started, select a staff member to serve as Safety Officer. Your Safety Officer can assess the current situation in your office and then develop, implement, and regularly evaluate a comprehensive infection prevention and control program. Your Safety Officer can use helpful publications from the CDC and OSAP to assist in this process.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Publications
Go to the CDC website and download:
Recommendations from the Guidelines for Infection Control in Dental Health-Care Settings – 2003
The Summary of Infection Prevention Practices in Dental Settings – Basic Expectations for Safe Care
In the Summary of Infection Prevention Practices document, use the two comprehensive checklists to assess what is being done correctly and issues that need attention. These checklists cover the following topics:
- Administrative Measures
- Infection Prevention Education and Training
- Dental Health Care Personnel Safety
- Program Evaluation
- Hand Hygiene
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- Respiratory Hygiene/Cough Etiquette
- Sharps Safety
- Safe Injection Practices
- Sterilization and Disinfection of Patient-Care Items and Devices
- Environmental Infection Prevention and Control
- Dental Unit Water Quality
You can also track your office policies and patient-care practices using the CDC’s DentalCheck app. This app is the electronic version of the checklists provided in the Summary of Infection Prevention Practices document. According to the CDC, you can create new checklists; and review, edit, or export data from your existing checklists. You can use this intuitive app to track the existence/absence of policies and practices and record your direct observation of behaviors related to personnel and patient care.
Organization for Safety, Asepsis and Prevention (OSAP) Resources
You can also access support for your infection prevention and control program at OSAP. This organization, a community of clinicians, educators, researchers, and industry representatives promotes the safe delivery of oral healthcare. OSAP, having established a network of infection prevention and control experts, focuses on improving compliance with safe dental practices.
OSAP offers an extensive collection of resources, including FAQs, checklists, and toolkits to help you deliver the safest possible care to your patients.
