COVID-19 Practice Closure

TO ALL WILLOW TREE DENTAL PATIENTS:

The Chief Dental Officer ( CDO MARCH 2020) has released a statement :

ALL DENTAL PRACTICES IN THE UK HAVE BEEN ORDERED TO:

• Cease all care of anyone who is classed as non-urgent and stop all procedures that generate aerosols.
• Dental Practices – the staff are at a very high risk of contracting the virus from the public and should only offer a dental service if they have the resources and the PPE.

For the safety of our patients, the general public and our staff members, we at Willow Tree Dental and Orthodontic Centre are following BDA, NHS and LDC guidelines that  ALL Dental and Orthodontic Care be stopped with immediate effect, until further notice. You receive a text confirming the cancellation. We have cancelled ALL appointments until 31.05.2020 and we will monitor the situation until then as we may need to cancel further appointments.

We strongly advise patients to avoid seeking dental assistance until the coronavirus has been controlled and practice self-isolation for their own and others’safety.

The NHS is being overburdened – and dentists and dental staff will soon be asked to become key workers at the NHS hospitals.

IF YOU HAVE ANY OF THE FOLLOWING YOU MUST WAIT UNTIL THE PRACTICE REOPENS

• Routine care such as a dental check-up and hygiene treatment
• Fillings and other treatments that are not urgent
• Mild or moderate pain: that is, pain not associated with an urgent care condition and that responds to pain-relief measures
• Minor dental trauma
• Post-extraction bleeding that the patient is able to control using self-help measures
• Loose or displaced crowns, bridges or veneers
• Fractured or loose-fitting dentures and other appliances
• Fractured posts
• Fractured, loose or displaced fillings
• Treatments normally associated with routine dental care
• Bleeding gums
• Orthodontic or Invisalign treatment
• Cosmetic, Periodontic or Implant treatment

WHAT IS CLASSED AS A DENTAL EMERGENCY?

Dental emergencies include:

• Trauma including facial/oral laceration and/or dentoalveolar injuries, for example, avulsion of a permanent tooth
• Oro-facial swelling that is significant and worsening
• Post-extraction bleeding that the patient is not able to control with local measures
• Dental conditions that have resulted in acute systemic illness or raised temperature as a result of dental infection
• Severe trismus
• Oro-dental conditions that are likely to exacerbate systemic medical conditions such as diabetes (that is lead to acute decompensation of medical conditions such as diabetes)
• Broken brackets, lost elastics and broken wires ARE NOT an emergency

PLEASE NOTE – that you will NOT BE SEEN BY THE NHS or PRIVATE EMERGENCY DENTAL SERVICE or by our staff at Willow Tree Dental if you DO NOT FALL INTO THESE CATEGORIES.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU DO FALL INTO A DENTAL EMERGENCY CATEGORY THAT CANNOT WAIT

ALL Private and NHS patients should now call NHS 111 services where a specialist dentist IS NOT NEEDED.

For those emergencies that CANNOT WAIT and patients NOT in the high-risk categories and think they may need to see a Specialist Dentist from Willow Tree Dental: contact the practice,  we are running an email triage system and will have to filter those that we can and can’t see.

Please contact us by email [email protected]

(it may take up to 48 hours for me to get back to you as I will be dealing with other emergencies).

(IF WE HAVE THE RESOURCES THEN WE WILL TRY AND SEE YOU / YOUR REFERRED PATIENT FOR URGENT CARE: Otherwise, they will be advised to seek NHS emergency care. PLEASE BE AWARE THERE IS AN EXTREME SHORTAGE OF PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT AND STAFF)

HIGH-RISK PATIENTS

NO HIGH-RISK PATIENT WILL BE SEEN AT WILLOW TREE DENTAL CENTRE:

1. ALL Infected and high-risk patients should be referred to the place advised to dentists by contacting

[email protected]

2. Patients can find out the local high-risk dental centre by calling NHS 111

(Special facilities have been set up with full clinical PPE setups)

WHO IS HIGH-RISK?

• Anyone displaying any COVID-19 symptoms; a new and continuous cough, sore throat, or a temperature of at least 37.8 degrees
• Patients who are or should be self-isolating
• 70 years or over
• Asthmatic
• Anyone with a respiratory condition
• Diabetic
• Low immunity
• Those that have been in contact with a known carrier or infectious individual
• Those that have been abroad within the last two weeks
• Those that continue to work or travel into Central London
• Those that use any form of public transport
• Key workers

This list may change as more advice comes out.

ALL INVISALIGN PATIENTS – will be asked to hold their treatment when they come to the end of their set of aligners. 

FIXED ORTHODONTIC PATIENTS- can remain in their current brace wire.

You may seek advice if you are not sure what to do – please email us and we will do our utmost to get back to you.

We will reopen as soon as the risk to our staff and to our patients is eliminated, we will email you to let you know when we are open.

Thank you for your patience and understanding and please, be responsible through this crisis. Please stay home to protect yourself, your family and your community.

Wishing you all well,

Willow Tree Dental Team