Dear Palo Alto Orthodontics Family:
We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety.
Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies very closely so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies’ recommendations.
You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to protect you and our team:
• Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office.
• Our Waiting Room is currently closed to comply with proper social distancing recommendations and for your safety. We ask that you come into the office by yourself or if needed, with only one guardian. We ask all other family members to remain in the car to minimize your exposure. We will be sending home reports or scheduling a follow up phone call as needed. We will also be making the appointments before each patient leaves, which can be rescheduled as needed via text, email or phone. If sending your child in alone, please wait in the car and we will walk them back the car after the appointment.
• Our tooth brushing station is closed, so please brush before arriving at the office.
• Our Restroom is also closed except for the sink. Please use the restroom before arriving at the office.
• All Patients and Guardians are required to wear a mask. Due to the severe shortage of masks for our team, we are unable to provide masks to you or any guardians attending the appointment. Please bring your own mask for your protection.
• Upon arrival, we will verify screening questions, take your temperature using a no-touch thermometer, ask you to wash your hands for 20 sec with soap and water, then use a mouth-rinse for 1 minute (1.5% hydrogen peroxide).
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time.
• We will do our best to continue to accommodate your schedules and ask for your patience as we learn to manage our schedules as well.
• We understand that everyone is as anxious to come back and see us as we are to see you. We kindly ask that you allow us to reach out to you, rather than you calling us to reschedule your appointment. This will allow us to get everyone rescheduled in the most efficient and fair manner to everyone.
• However, if anything is loose, broken, or doesn’t fit, please email us or let us know when we are scheduling your next appointment so we can reserve the correct amount of time for your appointment.
How you Can Help Us:
Many of you have asked how you can help support our office while we have been closed and through the months ahead. We thank you for your warm thoughts in what has been a stressful and difficult time for our team. We know this is felt throughout the community as we have all been affected by the pandemic. Our office has grown due to your support and recommendations to friends and family. We would love for this to continue so we can continue to provide healthy and confident smiles to our community! Please continue to share your experiences with your friends and neighbors. Also if you could share your positive experience online, we would love for you leave us a review on google:
bit.ly/paortho
We love having you as part of our family and we are so excited to see you all again! Please don’t hesitate to ask any questions you may have about treatment or any updates in our office.
Warmly,
Jenny Yoo-Park, DMD, MS and the Palo Alto Orthodontics Team
Palo Alto Orthodontics
O – 650-327-2310
www.PaloAltoOrthodontics.com