HIGH-QUALITY, PROFESSIONAL DENTAL CARE THAT MAKES YOU SMILE

DEAR PATIENTS, 

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 infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and staff safe.

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 so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. 
We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff. For example:

• 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.
• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed. We will take your temperature upon arrival. Please wear your own mask into the office.
• We will ask you to call us to let us know you have arrived for your appointment.  We will instruct you as to when we are ready to seat you directly in the dental chair to avoid spending any time in the waiting room.  We ask that you come into the office alone, unless you are a minor or need a caregiver for assistance.
• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
• 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.
• Due to the amount of extra inventory and time we are spending, we ask that you give us 48 hours’ notice if you cannot make your confirmed appointment.  There may be a failed appointment charge incurred for failing to show up for your confirmed appointment time.
• We are using the most advanced protective equipment and techniques available to us. We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call our office at (515)233-3778 or visit our website at jeffherrickdental.com.  

Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends.

Sincerely,

Jeffrey G. Herrick, DDS and Staff

Although dental offices were given the green light to open, we have decided to wait a few more days, in order to get the necessary PPE supplies so we may feel confident that we are not jeopardizing our staff and/or patients’ health and well-being. 

At this time, we will plan on opening our doors on Monday, May 18th, to give our suppliers time to get the necessary, but back-ordered, supplies we feel we should be utilizing for safety. When we open our doors, we feel our practice will operate in as safe an environment as is possible. 

We will operate under stringent CDC guidelines, to the best of our ability. We will ask you to bring your own masks, to wait in your car or outside to bypass the time spent in the waiting room. We will take your forehead temperature, and wear the most advanced PPE we have available to us- masks, face shields, gowns, gloves, and headcovers.

We welcome all our patients back and appreciate your patronage and understanding. We will continue to strive to offer the best dental care with your health and safety in mind.