COVID

8/7/2020

Dear Miami Designer Smiles Patients:

We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to your safety.

Infection control has always been a top priority for our practice, and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it’s both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep our Miami Designer Smiles team and our patients safe.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agency’s recommendations.

Keep in mind that the universal COVID precautions in effect since the 1980s have protected us and our patients from many viruses and bacteria. Now in the post-COVID world, we want to continue to evolve and improve our protocols, and Drs. Garcia and Sanchez-Garcia are invested in technological advances to not only meet the CDC and ADA guidelines, but also exceed them.

You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and team. Some of the additional measures you may notice are:

• Patients should not come in if they are not feeling well or have traveled recently.
• Your temperature will be taken before entering the office and pre-rinsing, per ADA and CDC guidelines.
• A new commercial-grade environmental air sterilizer has been installed to purify and filter the air in the office. (The air purification system utilizes photohydroionization technology that utilizes safe low-level ozone, super oxide ions, hydro peroxides, passive negative ions and UV light targeted on a hydrated tri-metallic target to develop an advanced photo-catalytic oxidation.) Another system we have put in place is increased periodic sanitation of all areas.
• We will be using additional protective equipment for our team members.
• Electrolytically generated hypochlorous acid sanitation through sprays and foggers to periodically sanitize all surfaces and the air. Hypochlorous acid is effective at killing bacteria, bacterial spores, viruses and fungi and is 100 times more effective than chlorine bleach. It is also efficient and natural as hypochlorous acid is non-toxic and eco-friendly.
• We will also use special equipment to reduce the aerosol used chair side without disrupting the excellent care you have come to know and trust when you come to Miami Designer Smiles.

We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.

• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you’re offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to minimize the number of patients in one of our multiple reception areas at any one time. You can also call the office when you arrive to the parking lot and wait in your car until we call you in.

We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient, safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call or text our office at 305-595-4616. Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors and friends.

Sincerely,

Drs. Raul & Conchi Garcia