Dr Randi D Fratkin Pediatric Dentistry

06/04/2020

Patients and parents:
I hope this finds you and your family well. I appreciate that it is a long message, but I feel that it is important that I explain everything that we are doing to return to work. I hope this post answers all your questions but if you have any further concerns please do not hesitate to be in touch with me.

I am happy to let you know that this week I have slowly reopened my office. There are a number of things about which I’d like to let you know. Please read the following information and remember that everything that I am doing is ultimately in an effort to ensure the safety of my patients, families, and staff, all of whom are all such an important part of our community.

Prior to the government mandated office closure, I began to prepare for changes that I expected would be required. In March, we began in-person screening for Covid-19 symptoms, increased sanitization of all high touch surfaces and waiting room furniture, and also removed all books and toys from the waiting room. Those measures continue with our gradual reopening.

The Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario is the governing body that provides guidelines to maintain care standards and safety of patients in the dental care setting. On May 31 they issued updated guidelines for return to practice in conjunction with the Ontario Ministry of Health and in alignment with current Centre for Disease Control standards. There were a few changes that I have made to the office to maintain compliance with these guidelines. Some of these will be evident when you visit the practice and some will not.

•I have fewer appointments to offer than normal for one main reason—to enable the ability of physical distancing within the office. As well, to facilitate this, I have reduced staffing in the office. Unfortunately, this may mean somewhat reduced flexibility in appointment times, and I hope that this will only be a temporary measure.

•When two siblings attend the office, in most situations, we will see them one after the other, and in the same room. The main reason for this is to allow rooms to sit empty for at least 30 minutes before another family enters. All rooms, like before, are thoroughly cleaned after each appointment and any high touch surfaces such as chairs (all plastic) are also wiped down.

•The day before your appointment you will receive an email that explains all the changes/procedures that are now in place and a set of questions that facilitate a COVID-19 screen. All people entering the office must have negative responses to all the questions.

•I am asking one parent to accompany patients (where required) and no additional siblings (unless absolutely necessary—I appreciate that there are exceptions). All adults entering the office, and wherever possible patients, are asked to properly wear a non-medical mask. I appreciate that younger and special needs children may not tolerate this.

•Upon arrival at the office, there is a sign on the outside door with a review of screening questions. Confirm that everyone in your group answers no to all questions prior to entering the office.

•Upon entering the office, hand sanitizer is available to be used and we will do a forehead temperature scan.

•You will be shown directly into a treatment room. In some instances, it will be acceptable for a parent and a sibling to wait in the waiting room. Hard surfaces will be wiped down frequently during the day.

•Following treatment I will ask that you stay in the room until Anne has processed the claim, at which time you can make your post-treatment arrangements. Our payment processor accepts contact-free payments.

•Please sanitize hands prior to leaving. I also ask that if you or anyone in your family experiences any signs or symptoms or is diagnosed with COVID-19 within fourteen days following treatment, that you please report it to my office as well as your local public health unit.

Our building has also increased cleaning protocols throughout the public spaces, and hand sanitizer is present in many locations.

I have missed my patients and families, and look forward to seeing you soon. Please contact the office at 416.413.0550 or email [email protected] to reschedule your postponed appointment.

Randi Fratkin

06/04/2020

Hi Everyone...I'm happy to let you know that we are slowly reopening the office this week. We have reduced staff and are seeing fewer patients so that we can comply with physical distancing measures; and have implemented a number of new recommendations to keep staff, patients, and families safe. Some of the things you will see include forehead temperature scanning and hand sanitizing upon entry, physical barriers, enhanced personal protection equipment, contact-free payments, and pre-appointment screening via email. Anyone that has had an appointment postponed since mar 17 is welcome to call the office at 416-413-0550. I will be posting a more detailed note here soon as well. Feel free to contact me at [email protected] if you have any further questions, and I look forward to seeing you in person soon.

05/27/2020

The province of Ontario has just announced that health care providers, including dentists, can reopen offices immediately. The complete list of regulations surrounding this reopening has yet to be released by our regulatory college. Until we have this information, and can complete changes required and are able to obtain the appropriate personal protective equipment (and there is still a shortage of PPE), we will remain closed. We will also have to do advance screening and staggering of patients to ensure physical distancing. Hopefully it won't take us too long to implement these measures but it was expected that we would have more notice than we were given. Please be patient and we will be contacting everyone as quickly as we can.
Our target date to reopen is wednesday june 3. Appointments tues june 2 will be rebooked, and we will be calling or emailing to confirm all appointments.

05/16/2020

With the province's emergency order extended to June 2, we will not be able to open the office for at least an additional two weeks. All appointments up to then will be postponed and rebooked. My best guess is that dentistry will be in phase 2 of the reopening plan, but that could be in four weeks or more. I continue to be available for your questions or concerns (see previous posts for contact info) and am actively engaging in minor modifications to keep everyone safe once we are able to return to work.

Below is information from Northwest Healthcare Properties (building management) regarding what is being done so we will be able to reopen and care for our patients and families:

“Our chief priority is the health and safety of our tenants, our employees, third-party contractors, and the visitors to our buildings. Every decision we make during this next important phase will be guided by that principle. Taking direction from the local and provincial governments as they identify guidelines for reopening businesses, we are putting into place safety measures and new operational protocols that we hope will address the safety of all who enter our buildings. This includes, but is not limited to:

Continuing enhanced cleaning and disinfecting procedures for high-touch surfaces in high-traffic areas

Requiring appropriate PPE to be worn by on-site building staff and third-party contractors, such as janitorial staff

Instituting measures to facilitate appropriate physical distancing in common areas such as lobbies, hallways, washrooms, and elevators

Adjusting building hours of operation to allow tenants to extend the hours during which they can schedule on-site patient appointments.”

05/09/2020

No real update or news to offer: The office is still closed, and I expect it will be until at least May 19, the current end-date of the Ontario ‘state of emergency’ non-essential business closure. All appointments up to that date will be postponed and rebooked when we have a reopening date. Office voicemail is being checked infrequently so please email [email protected] if an emergency arises or you have any other concerns.

Please know that once we reopen, we will be implementing additional measures including, but not limited to, advance screening, enhanced PPE, and managing patient flow. All of these actions are important to ensure the health and safety of staff and families.

Stay safe everyone.

04/28/2020

Update: The office is still closed, and will be until at least May 12, the current end-date of the Ontario ‘state of emergency’ non-essential business closure. All appointments up to that date will be postponed and rebooked when we have a reopening date. Office voicemail is being checked infrequently so please email [email protected] if an emergency arises or you have any other concerns. Stay safe everyone.

04/10/2020

Not much has changed. We are still closed indefinitely. All appointments through the end of April will be postponed and rebooked when we reopen. Office voicemail is being checked infrequently so please email [email protected] if an emergency arises or you have any other concerns. Stay safe everyone.

03/26/2020

We are closed for at least an additional two weeks. All appointments through April 9 will be rescheduled.
In an emergency, please email [email protected] and I will contact you.

03/16/2020

As 'recommended' by The Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario, we will be closing the office to routine elective treatment for at least the next two weeks. If you have an appointment either this week or next, Anne will be in touch with you to reschedule over the next day or two. If your child has a dental emergency, please either message me here or send an email to [email protected]
Please listen to what doctors and epidemiologists are saying about this. Please stay safe.

10/30/2019

https://www.thestar.com/life/parent/opinion/2019/10/30/keep-halloween-to-1-day-then-go-back-to-your-healthy-routine-experts-say.html

Toronto dentist says increase in tooth decay is due to candy culture, bottled water.