How to Practice Social Distancing at Your Orthodontist’s Office

Are you looking for an “orthodontist near me” to care for your braces after weeks in COVID-19 quarantine? While many orthodontic practices are reopening and providing non-urgent treatment, it’s important to remember that social distancing is still essential for protecting yourself and others from the coronavirus. How can you stay six feet apart from others while visiting a busy orthodontic office? Here are a few ways your dentist near Newark is helping their patients stay healthy and stay a safe distance apart.

Sequenced Patient Scheduling

Your orthodontist near Newark and their team is working hard to help you practice social distancing before you even arrive at the office. It all starts with sequenced patient scheduling, which allows more time between patients for coming, going, and cleaning. While this means you may be offered fewer options when scheduling your appointment, this measure plays an important part in limiting your exposure to other patients.

Virtual Waiting Room

Instead of waiting in the reception area, you can check-in for your appointment from the safety of your car. This virtual waiting room is an excellent way to reduce your contact with other patients and high-traffic areas. When your treatment room is ready, you’ll either be contacted via cell phone or a team member will come out and escort you inside. Then, you can bypass the reception area entirely and go directly to your examination room.

Expanded Patient Appointments

To limit your trips outside, your orthodontist is also offering expanded appointments. In the past, you may have had your orthodontic work completed over several separate visits. In order to save you time and minimize how many times you need to leave your house, your orthodontist will be able to get more done within a single appointment.

Changes to the Reception Area

When you enter your orthodontist’s practice, you may notice that the reception room has:

• No toys or magazines: Since COVID-19 can survive for hours or days on surfaces like paper and plastic, many frequently touched items have been temporarily removed.
• Fewer chairs: To remind patients to stay at least six feet apart, some chairs have been removed. There are helpful signs and one-way traffic areas to encourage social distancing as well.
• New clear plastic barriers: These plastic shields help block the movement of airborne particles throughout the office and are disinfected regularly.

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, your orthodontist near Newark and their team are working hard to provide excellent dentistry while respecting social distancing recommendations. They’ve implemented several new safety protocols to keep you, the other patients, and the entire practice as healthy as possible.

About the Practice

Our highly trained team at Wigal Orthodontics is monitoring the COVID-19 pandemic closely and adjusting their admirable dental safety and infection control practices accordingly. They have implemented 19 additional steps that are incremental to the high standards of sanitation they have always followed. To keep their practice germ-free and their patients healthy, they have added numerous social distancing, health check, and instrument sterilization practices. If you’d like to learn more about their commitment to safety, please contact them via their website or at (740) 281-0445.