| |
| FAMILY DENTISTRY |
| |
| Phone: 510.834.4640 |
373 9th Street, Suite 401, Oakland , CA 94607 |
|
|
| |
|
Sterilize / Disinfect and Protect
|
We would like to demonstrate to you how we keep dental instruments as clean and germ-free as possible for your dental needs. The following is standard routine we use for every patient under our care:
At the dental operatory: We use disposible rubber cup polishing assemblies and saliva ejectors for every patient. The nondisposibles such as metal suction tips that have direct contact with the mouth are removed and sterilized after every patient. New plastic covers are placed over parts of equipment that do not usually have direct contact with the mouth to prevent cross infection. Even the plastic covering the dental chair is replaced new for each subsequent patient. Finally, the countertops are wiped clean with new disinfectant embedded cloths before the next patient enters the room. |
   
| In the Central sterilization room: The dental assistant brings a tray full of just used dental instruments into the room and immediately soaks all the hand tools in a water solution to soften organic debris. At the proper time, these tools are transferred to an ultrasonic machine filled with soapy solution to agitate and remove any matter. Next, instruments are removed from the ultrasonic and rinsed in the sink. Hand tools are scrutinized for any remaining hard debris such as dental cement. These remaining tools are then scrubbed with a wire brush. Instruments are then dried, packaged into specialized indicator bags and placed into a steam autoclave and set to a temperature of 273 degrees Fahrenheit which is 134 degrees Celsius. For reference, 100 degrees Celsius is the boiling point of water. The steam autoclave is sealed during the entire cycle so that the inner chamber is steam under pressure for effective killing of organisms. As a final precaution, we perform spore testing once a week and send in the test samples to a commercial lab to be tested. We receive a report every quarter on the results and are notified immediately if a test becomes positive so we can take proper action. We do all these procedures to protect your health. |
   
.JPG) 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|