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January  2019 Newsletter
                              developing clinical excellence
In This Newsletter
Resolutions vs. Wishes
A Clean Start To The New Year
Upcoming Events

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How Andrea can help:
· Sterilization review, design and implementation

·OSHA training, reviews and manuals

· Basic and advanced chairside duties

· Clinical training system and manual

· Indirect bonding

· Clinical coordinator

· Verbal skills to encourage compliance

· Reduction of emergency visits

· Personalized clinical manual

· Inventory control

· Instrument set ups and organization in the operatory

· Implementation of your treatment plans

· Reduction of patients beyond estimated completion date


On the web
at AndreaCookConsulting.com



Are you making any New Year's resolutions this year? If so, keep in mind the difference between a resolution and wishful thinking.
Making a resolution is the easy part. Putting a plan in action to accomplish it is the key to making a resolution really happen.

What's the difference between a wish and a commitment? Wishing is passive. Commitment is active. When you wish for something to happen, you just hope that things will go well on their own. If things don't go well, there's no "Plan B". You just won't get what you wished for.

Instead, aim for a specific goal. The more specific your commitment, the better. As you contemplate making specific changes, let yourself visualize what it would be like to have achieved this goal. Let yourself feel the excitement. The goal is in sight, you can smell it, you can taste it... Remember what this feels like: This is the experience of feeling motivated.

Wishing you all a year full of accomplishments.

  A Clean Start To The New Year

A re cent inspection at a local dental office has prompted me to remind all orthodontic offices to make sure you follow the current CDC and OSHA regulations. A financial penalty is challenging the reputation damage this news release causes can be irreparable.
This office was fined and his dental license was suspended for multiple infractions. https://www.kingcounty.gov/depts/health/news/2018/December/18-dental-infection.aspx

The inspection was performed in response to a complaint, and it identified multiple infection control problems, including the cleaning, disinfection, sterilization, and storage of reprocessed instruments. Some of the failures included:
  1. No spore test since January 4, 1998
  2. No ultrasonic cleaner log
  3. Expired ultrasonic and cold sterilization solutions
  4. Instrument stored in designated sterile areas were placed loosely in an open tray containing dust, debris, and other such items.
  5. No hospital grade surface disinfectant was available to clean the operatory between patients
  6. Did not have any written infection control policies and procedures
  7. Did not have a written blood-borne pathogen exposure control plan or training records
The Washington State Department of Health provided me with their list of most common CDC violations found during an inspection;
  1. Improper management and disposal of biohazardous waste materials
  2. Improper biological monitoring of sterilizer(s)
  3. Improper disposal of sharp implements
  4. Improper hand hygiene
  5. Lack of appropriate personal protective equipment
  6. Lack of written exposure control plan
  7. Lack of written protocol for instrument processing and sterilization
  8. Lack of verification of office staff vaccination for Hepatitis B vaccine
  9. Inability to verify sterilization of dental instruments
  10. Improper storage of dental instruments
  11. Improper flushing of dental water line
  12. Repeated use of single use disposables
  13. Cross contamination in the operatory, sterilization area and/or dental laboratory
  14. Improper operatory disinfection
  15. Failure to properly sterilize dental handpieces
  16. Failure to use heavy utility gloves while handling contaminated instruments in sterilization area
  17. Failure to separate sterile from non-sterile areas in sterilization area
  18. Co-mingling of dental materials and food in refrigerator
  19. Failure to maintain updated Safety Data Sheets
You can find an OSHA and CDC compliance checklist on my website that you can fill out to evaluate your current level of compliance and identify areas of lapses.  Use these to ensure your office has appropriate infection prevention policies and practices in place, including appropriate training and education to provide safe care and a safe working environment.

So, if your office is not abiding by these requirements, the time is NOW! The new year is a great time for offices to review their safety programs, update employee training and implement procedure updates to ensure standard enforcement. Together we can improve your sterilization efficiency and compliance with current CDC guidelines and OSHA protocols. Please contact me to schedule your in-office consultation.  

Upcoming Events

Spring meeting time is upon us. I hope you and your teams are able to take advantage of the information at these meetings. The financial impact when sending a team to these meetings is great, but now is the time to evaluate your systems, gather information and implementing changes.
 
I hope to see you at one of the following meetings that I will be attending and speaking at this spring:
topsFest - January 24 - 26, Las Vegas, NV
The Forum 2019 - February 21 - 23, San Antonio, TX
Ortho2 User's Group Meeting - February 28 - March 2, Fort Worth, TX
Dolphin Users meeting - February 28 - - March 2, Phoenix, AZ
Cloud9 User's meeting - March 14 - 16, Atlanta, GA
AAO - May 3 - 7, Los Angeles, CA
 
There are some great lectures for your team at these meetings and many of the vendors offer special savings during. With today's economy, I urge you all to take advantage of these promotions.
 
Here is to "developing your clinical excellence" in 2019!

Thank you for your continued support of my clinical newsletter.  I hope you and your team find the information useful.  Please visit my website and feel free to email me with any comments or questions.
Andrea Cook
Andrea Cook LLC
  
Sincerely,
Andrea