We are open for business! Here are our ongoing responses to COVID-19.

Safety First

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, we’ve been researching, adapting, and implementing new safety guidelines to protect you, your family, and our staff. Your family’s safety, our staff’s safety, and the safety of our wider McMinnville community is our top priority, and we are committed to caring for your health not just in our usual way, but to prevent the spread of infectious disease.

If you’d like to speak with us personally about any concerns you may have before your appointment, please give us a call at 503-472-2222.

Scheduling

We are currently scheduling existing and new patients for cleanings, checkups and procedures.

Arrival

When you come in for your appointment, we will ask you a series of screening questions about any COVID-19 symptoms you may have experienced recently. These questions are designed to identify if it is safe for you and for our staff to hold your appointment at this time.

• If you have had symptoms in the past two weeks, please stay home and reschedule for a later time.
• If you have no symptoms, we will proceed with your appointment and will bring you to our treatment rooms as soon as possible.

We have a number of new procedures in place to create a safe environment for your visit to our clinic. While these are our current guidelines, we understand that many of our patients might have reasons to need accommodation, so don’t hesitate to give us a call.

When you arrive:

• Please call us from your car at 503-472-2222 to let us know you are here.
• We will call you back or come to your car to get you when it is time for you to be seen.
• We ask that you wear a protective mask for your safety and the safety of our staff. If you don’t have a mask, we will provide you with a high-grade surgical mask.
• We will ask you a series of screening questions to determine if it is safe to proceed with your appointment.
• We will take your temperature.
• We have hand sanitizer available for your use.

Waiting room:

Some of our patients take the bus, or ride a bike to come see us. Summer is upon us and the weather will soon not be amenable to waiting in cars, especially for older patients, or patients in wheelchairs. We have our waiting room set up so that patients who need to wait in the waiting room can practice social distancing of at least 6 ft. between people. Unfortunately, we currently do not have our children’s area, toys, magazines, and other items available for use in the waiting room. If you need any additional accommodation in any shape or form, please let us know.

When you see us:

We look a lot different with these masks on! Believe us, we miss chatting with you in a normal way, and above all, we miss the smiles. We are trying to smile with our eyes these days, but in the meantime, all of our staff are wearing protective masks and will do our best to show you how happy we are to see you. All of our protective gear meets or exceeds standards set by OSHA and the Oregon Dental Board, the ADA, and the CDC. All of our clinical staff has had their masks fit-tested with an approved testing kit.

Our staff may be wearing:

• KN95 mask
• N95 surgical mask
• Hepa filter mask
• Isolation gowns
• Protective gloves
• Face shields

 Thank you for adjusting with us to this new reality! We are working in extra time between patients to accommodate the time needed to don the appropriate gear.

Sanitization

In normal times, we run a tight ship in terms of cleanliness, but we are taking extra precautions to sanitize surfaces in the building between patients.

• We wipe down operatory surfaces between patient visits and replace disposable covers.
• We sterilize our instruments in an autoclave, which is a medical-grade sterilization machine.
  

Office upgrades

In addition to using protective gear, also known as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), we continue to research and make upgrades to our building and facilities to ensure and maximize safety. COVID-19 in particular is spread by droplets in the air. We have made the following upgrades to help minimize those droplets, also called aerosols.

• UV Sterilization: UV light kills any living particle that has landed on surfaces or smaller objects. 
• Ionic Air Purifiers: These filter particles out of the air, including droplets and pollen.

We are here for you

The situation is constantly changing, sometimes day-by-day. We continue to monitor all of the guidelines in an effort to stay in line with the current research regarding infectious disease. This isn’t a once-and-done thing for us. We are committed to the care of our patients and to providing you with a safe and welcoming environment, even in times of public health crises. 

If you have any concerns whatsoever, please give us a call at 503-472-222.

Dr. Diesburg and Team