Nosocomial Infections: Dental Practice Risks

Medical facilities struggle to prevent nosocomial infections. Dental professionals share this fight.

Starting in 1998, researchers studied how dental professionals spread nosocomial infections. One study found plaque deposits increased after patients entered intensive care. Moreover, four out of ten patients acquired nosocomial infections that lived on the plaque itself. (1)

In Canada, Dr. Michael John, a leading microbiologist and immunologist, began talking with Canadian dentists. (2) He argued that poor infection control spread various nosocomial infections. He reviewed tuberculosis, MRSA, CMV, RSV, and other bacterial and viral infections.

Despite perfect infection control, the best dental professional could contract any microbe without knowing it. Dental masks cannot fully protect you. Exposure can happen outside the office through airborne droplets or surface particles. In fact, ten to twenty percent of all carriers do not know they are carriers because they have no symptoms.

How can you protect both your employees and your patients?

Mitigate Risk with ADSS

Partner with us.

Advanced Decontamination & Sanitization Services (ADSS) has a long history of neutralizing biological contaminants. Our history is built on years of work with government and industry leaders.

Through the proprietary TOMI SteraMist system, our technicians reduce bacterial, viral, and fungal CFUs: in some cases, up to 99.9999%. Our system quickly sanitizes high-touch surfaces like waiting room furniture and toys as well as sensitive technology like X-ray machines and autoclave surfaces.

For the health of your employees and your customers, as well as your own peace of mind, call us today. We work with you professionally and courteously to understand your unique needs, and design a solution tailored to your environment.

Nosocomial infections present a genuine employee and patient risk in dental practices. Partnership with ADSS can mitigate these risks.

Benefits of Partnership with ADSS

After you schedule with us, what do you gain?

First, your employees have a healthier work environment: they take fewer sick days because there are fewer microbes. Over time, this lowers benefit costs as the risk assumed by your employees decreases. Because your healthier employees are absent less, your schedule becomes more efficient, improving your customers’ experience. As a result, they are happier, improving patient retention and reviews. A healthier customer environment, coupled with demonstrable efforts to lower the risk of preventable infections lowers malpractice insurance costs.

Healthier employees. Healthier and happier customers. Lower insurance costs. It’s a win-win-win scenario.

(1) Details from a PubMed abstract (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9468169) of an original study by Fourrier F, Duvivier B, Boutigny H, Roussel-Delvallez M, and Chopin C entitled “Colonization of dental plaque: a source of nosocomial infections in intensive care unit patients.” The piece was originally published for the Society of Critical Care Medicine. (1998 Feb;26(2):301-308).

(2) Details from Dr. John’s original piece at https://www.cda-adc.ca/jcda/vol-66/issue-10/550.html