Louisiana Dental Assistants Association
Hot topic: Infection Control
There have been a lot of stories in the news lately about Infection Control. The American Dental Assistants Association responded to the oral health concerns in Oklahoma and Colorado. To view the artilce: http://dentalassistant.org/Content/Details/247articles and look for the article: ADAA responds to oral health concerns in Oklahoma and Colorado.
Training is critical.
We hire staff that has not been trained and we go over the basics, wipe this or place this and then remove this. We don't always train as we should, which is explaining why we need to do those things. If you don't know about the Chain of Infection you won't know why it is so important not to break that chain. Read about the Oklahoma or Colorado concerns and see what outcomes can occur when proper sterilization and infection control procedures are not followed.
I encourage staff to take courses on these topics. LSU Continuing Education is hosting a program this summer. The LDAA will be looking into dates to host a course. I am certain there will a course at the ADA/ADAA Convention in New Orleans in September, check out dentalassistant.org for courses geared towards the Dental Assisting Staff.
Remember:
this is a critical part of your position, being knowledgeable in the steps toward keeping yourself, your team members, your patients and your family safe from the diseases that can be transmitted in our practices. But, can be prevented with a few required/recommended steps. Know what you can and should be doing regarding safety and disease.
Check your Ultrasonic:
You can do check your own Ultrasonic Cleaner to determine its effectiveness:
take a piece of Aluminum Foil and put into the Ultrasonic Cleaner, and run in for 30 seconds. It should show an even distribution of indentations across the
foil, if not, the ultrasonic is not working properly. The Ultrasonic Cleaner works on the cavitation premise, and the high frequency waves need to be accessing all parts of the instruments in the unit. Also, always put the lid on the machine when in use, to prevent splatter and microorganisms escaping into the air from the unit.
DID YOU KNOW?
About Saint Apollonia
Do you have a toothache? A quick prayer to St. Apollonia may help you feel better.
St. Apollonia's feast day is February 9. In Alexandria, Egypt, where Christians were being persecuted, Apollonia was dragged from her home and beaten by crowds of pagans. In the process of her beatings, all of her teeth were knocked out. This took place around the year 249.
The crowd threatened to throw her into a fire if she did not denounce God. As the legend goes, she told the crowd to wait for a brief moment, and then leapt into the flames on her own accord. St. Apollonia courageously became a martyr.
Rather than give a wild crowd what they wanted, Apollonia stuck firmly to her beliefs and shows to die instead of giving in to the power of the crowd.
Because Apollonia lost all of her teeth in the struggle, she is known as the patron saint of dentistry, and anyone suffering from dental problems should pray to St. Apollonia for their fast recovery.
Apollonia is often seen with pincers holding a tooth. She is also sometimes portrayed with a necklace with a golden tooth at the end.
Many Christians were being persecuted in Alexandria at the time Apollonia leapt into the fire, becoming a martyr. It was a difficult time for those who followed the Christian faith, these people were being ridiculed and persistently question, tortured and threatened with their lives. Rather then renounce Christ, Apollonia shows to go directly to Christ, by leaping into the fire.
After Apollonia's life, and her subsequent canonization, a great debate ensued. Was Apollonia truly a martyr, or did she commit suicide? That question really cannot be answered in the scope of this article, but has been a topic of discussion -- literally -- for centuries. St. Augustine declared Apollonius' act "heroic faith."
St. Apollonia became the patron saint of toothaches and other dental problems in the middle ages when gum and tooth disease reached epidemic status in Europe.
Saint Appolonia. Retrieved from http://hubpages.com/hub/SaintApollonia, November 1, 2010.