COVID-19 Information for Dental Patients
As of May 26, 2020
On May 15, BC Dental Association (BCDA) member dentists and certified dental specialists received guidelines from the Provincial Health Officer, the College of Dental Surgeons of BC and WorkSafeBC to expand dental services across BC. Details of the guidelines for all Oral Health Care Providers can be viewed at the College of Dental Surgeons of BC (CDSBC)
Dentists and dental teams have been experts at infection control for a long time. As we enter Phase 2 of the COVID-19 pandemic in BC, dental patients have an important role to play in keeping everyone safe.
Dental patients are asked to:
- contact the dental office in advance of any visit and advise them if you are at all unwell or have any flu-like symptoms, or have traveled outside BC
- complete a patient screening form in advance of your visit
- clean your hands
- limit your wait time in the office and/or wait outside the office if you are accompanying another person to the appointment
- observe physical distancing requirements in the dental office, before and after, treatment
- observe any other policies or procedures noted by your dental office
On behalf of our members, we thank patients for their understanding and patience as dental offices adapt to new office changes to meet evolving public health policies.
We're all in this together!
Dental Clinics
Dentists have always been experts at infection control and have COVID-19 policies and procedures in place to keep everyone safe.
Find A Dentist near you
Please ensure you contact the dental office by phone before you visit and disclose if you are not well or have any COVID-19 symptoms. To comply with physical distancing requirements, many dental offices may continue to provide initial consultations over the phone.
COVID-19 Dental Care Resource Information and Statements
Public Health Info & Resources
The BC government has launched a COVID-19 Support App & Self-Assessment Tool to provide information or determine if you may need testing. The app can be installed on smartphones or viewed as a website. A dedicated information phone line is also available for people who want to check their health status. The toll-free line is open at 1-888-268-4319 (1-888-COVID19) 7:30am - 8pm PST seven days a week for non-medical information about COVID-19, including information on travel and physical distancing, and access to support and services from the provincial and federal governments.
According to the WHO, the main way the disease spreads is through respiratory droplets expelled by someone who is coughing. The risk of catching COVID-19 from someone with no symptoms at all is very low. However, many people with COVID-19 experience only mild symptoms. This is particularly true at the early stages of the disease. It is therefore possible to catch COVID-19 from someone who has, for example, just a mild cough and does not feel ill. WHO is assessing ongoing research on the period of transmission of COVID-19 and will continue to share updated findings.
According to the WHO, people can catch COVID-19 from others who have the virus. The disease can spread from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth which are spread when a person with COVID-19 coughs or exhales. These droplets land on objects and surfaces around the person. Other people then catch COVID-19 by touching these objects or surfaces, then touching their eyes, nose or mouth. People can also catch COVID-19 if they breathe in droplets from a person with COVID-19 who coughs out or exhales droplets. This is why it is important to stay more than 2 meters (6 feet) away from other people.
WHO is assessing ongoing research on the ways COVID-19 is spread and will continue to share updated findings here.
Dental patients who have the following symptoms or respiratory illness should not go to the dentist:
- Fever, cough or acute respiratory illness (with or without pneumonia)
OR
- Traveled outside of Canada within 14 days prior to onset of symptoms
OR
- Close contact with a confirmed or probable case of COVID-19
OR
- Other potentially relevant exposure such as close contact with someone who was ill and had traveled outside of Canada in the 14 days before the onset of symptoms.
If you meet any of the criteria above, please contact your dentist to be assessed by phone and please contact HealthlinkBC at 8-1-1 to be assessed for testing, and/or call ahead to your primary health care provider or walk-in clinic and arrange for assessment by medical staff.