Tag: Covid-19

Rosedale VIP Dental Pods Featured in Toronto Guardian

Posted on December 8, 2021

Archer Dental Rosedale was featured in Toronto Guardian on Weds, Dec 8th.

Our new dental pods made the news! People are interested in seeing pictures and reading and learning about our new facilities, and now they’re booking appointments to visit our safe and sunny exam rooms. The cozy new spaces are smaller than regular operatories which means it’s easier for air filtration systems with medical grade HEPA filters to perpetually clean and purify the air.

Archer Dental Rosedale featured in Toronto Guardian on Wed 08 Dec 2021

The glass-enclosed dental examination rooms are made with Covid in mind to offer patients boutique dental experiences that are exclusive and secure.

Rosedale’s new exam rooms present dental patients with stunning views of Danforth Ave., Broadview Ave., and the Don River. Many people tell us they can see their homes, or schools, or some building in their area. This is neighbourhood dentistry! The new rooms get the morning sun, while larger operatories on the west side of the clinic overlook Toronto’s downtown core and enjoy warm afternoon rays.

Archer Dental Rosedale shows how Covid changed dentistry

Everything is so very streamlined. Archer Dental was among the first dental business in Canada to incorporate an AI chatbot, which we programmed ourselves to answer hundreds of frequently asked questions and for online appointment booking. This technology became a trendsetting solution in March 2020 with the onset of the Covid19 pandemic.

The ceiling vents clean the air with optional mood lighting which cycles through all colours.

This natural environment reduces anxiety and improves how patients perceive the health care center and how they’ll recall their own experiences

Archer Dental Rosedale, at Bloor and Sherbourne, is purpose-built to restore patient’s peace of mind, and oral health.

Archer Dental Offers Same Day Dentistry

With so many dental chairs available at Archer Dental Rosedale, it’s now possible for patients to enjoy same day dentistry which means any minor issue detected during a routine hygiene therapy session can very likely be resolved immediately, the same day, eliminating the need for another appointment.

The business conducted at all three Archer Dental locations is very streamlined. There’s no waiting in a common area beforehand, and no more lining-up to pay afterwards. Visitors are instead ushered direct to the examination rooms, and then hustled straight out again afterwards. The operatories are thoroughly cleaned and left dormant for a time in between. This is another reason why Rosedale opted to create more space.

Natalie Archer DDS is a subject matter expert regarding the most efficient layouts for modern dental clinics, and the Rosedale dental office is an inspiration. It’s incredibly clean and sterile, yet still manages to be a warm and friendly space where people can relax and feel safe.

Dr. Natalie Archer at Archer Dental Rosedale — Dr. Natalie Archer stands beside a VirusKiller air filtration machine at Archer Dental Rosedale

Advancing dental care in our changing world is the slogan embossed in white letters on the purple wall behind the front desk at Rosedale. This is not just a mission statement, but a rallying cry, in all three clinics.

Archer Dental is (Slowly) Reopening For Everyday Dentistry

Posted on June 2, 2020

Message from Joanne Eadie, Operations Manager

It’s June. How are your teeth holding up?

We hope this message finds you and your family in good health, and it’s with some excitement that we announce we can now see patients in our dental offices for comprehensive care (it’s not just emergencies-only anymore).

On Monday June 1st 2020, the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) released guidelines and a directive from the Chief Medical Officer of Ontario which permits the reopening of dental offices.

Archer Dental will take a slow and methodical approach to reopening as we adhere to evidence based dentistry guidelines. We’re working hard behind the scenes to have our clinics reopen seamlessly and to meet and exceed the conditions set forth by the government. While many things have changed, one constant truth remains: our offices are committed to ensuring your safety.

Infection control has always been a top priority in our practice. We follow all recommendations made by the RCDSO, IPAC and Public Health. We also follow all SAFE Dentistry practice protocols. Our offices may look and feel a little different, but we’re streamlining our processes to ensure our work space, work flow and patient experience conform to the strategy set forth to combat this global pandemic. We thank you again for your patience and support as we navigate these challenging times.

If you’re interested in scheduling an appointment please reach out so we may send access to our screening tool. The easiest path to treatment is however to simply visit our website where our virtual team member will assist you. Dental Attendant works around the clock to help patients schedule appointments. In the days and weeks to come we’re still prioritizing emergency care first. Alternatively you can call the office and our administrative team (who are working remotely) will happily assist you.

We’ll use the Dental Attendant Chatbot and its handy COVID-19 Self Screening Tool

On the day you arrive at the clinic everyone will have taken the COVID-19 Self Screening Test available via Dental Attendant chatbot software on the website. Everyone including yourself, and the results will be stored in our database. The staff will have taken this test prior to booking your appointment and you’ll need to speak with either myself or Joanna to secure your appointment after you have passed this requirement. Going forward, Archer Dental will not have front desk receptionists at any of our offices so any pre- COVID screening forms, deposits, financial arrangements, consent forms, screening and medical history forms, updates, and payments will all have to be done in advance to secure your appointment time. We thank you for your support as we work to keep yourself and our team as safe as possible. We’ll be seeing less patients, and limiting the number of staff in our office to ensure we maintain social distancing so we thank you in advance for your understanding.

Once inside the dental clinic, MASKS ARE MANDATORY and all guests must be escorted by a team member. We also ask that you leave any personal belongings at home.

Patients are to arrive on time and attend the office with either medical or non medical masks. Any latecomers to appointments will be rescheduled. Every person entering the office is expected to wear a face covering and will be asked to sanitize their hands. Please take your temperature the morning of your appointment. We’ll confirm your findings with a contact-less thermometer upon your arrival.

Our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, charging stations, children’s toys, and so forth, since these items are difficult to clean and disinfect. We ask you arrive to your appointment on your own and do not bring toys or outside items with you to your appointment.

We’ve been working hard to prepare the clinics for this day and we’ve streamlined our systems and embraced digital technology by training our team on new equipment, new protocols and new procedures designed to provide the public with the highest quality of treatment in the safest environment possible.

We truly look forward to seeing you. We’ve missed you and each other and our life helping people at our three clinics in Toronto. We’re here to support the public and help people manage their oral health. Don’t wait till the end of the pandemic to treat persistent problems. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing you at the office in the near future.

Sincerely Joanne Eadie

CFRB Weekend Morning Show – Dealing With A Dental Emergency During Covid

Posted on May 26, 2020

Dave Trafford is easy on the ears and his weekend radio show on CFRB 1010 in Toronto has a wide audience all across Ontario. In the podcast below, dated Saturday May 23rd 2020, Dave interviews Dr Natalie Archer on the challenges facing dentistry in the wake of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Listeners may rejoice to discover it’s not all bad news.

Trafford begins the show by describing in his folksy way how Canadian society simply shutdown on or around the 11th of March 2020. He relates how his own dental office called to cancel his appointment and when they asked if he wanted to reschedule it put a spotlight on the awkward question, when?

This is how the CFRB veteran radio host of The Weekend Show segues to introduce his guest, Dr Natalie Archer an ‘emergency dentist in Toronto’ and the interview begins with what that’s like and what constitutes an emergency.

The podcast, Dealing With A Dental Emergency During Covid & The Future of Safe Dentistry

It was a moment in history and something nobody alive today will ever forget; the NBA closed its doors and the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games were postponed and the whole world followed their examples and shut down. Natalie describes her decision-making process to close her three dental offices, and how she didn’t have a lot of choice as all dentists in Ontario received instructions from the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario (RCDSO) which stipulated that clinics could only open in case of emergencies.

Dentistry has high overhead and lots of expenses Natalie explains; there’s lots of pricey equipment in modern dental clinics and patient volume is necessary to create a successful business.

What is the Future of Dentistry after Covid-19?

Dr Archer had a lot of ideas on the subject of how oral health care could change in the near future, and how our population could become more health conscious in general. Regarding dentistry she outlined how PPE or Personal Protective Equipment is obviously going to be very important and this is tied directly to the need for EBD, Evidence Based Dentistry and industry-wide reporting.

Teledentistry was an idea that Natalie mentioned next and Dave seized upon as being difficult for dentists. He couldn’t imagine how cell phone pictures and the patient’s own description of the issue could be beneficial. Dr Archer explained how such practices while not ideal can effectively reduce the duration of the patient’s in-person visit when treatment occurs.

And finally Natalie discussed Dental Attendant, an AI chat bot for dental clinic websites that does coronovirus screening of patients via conversational information gathering for a questionnaire and how it answers frequently asked questions.

“What’s the most frequently asked question?” Dave asked playfully.

“Is what I’m feeling an emergency?” Natalie replied.

The show ends with Dave imagining he’s on a Telehealth call informing the dentist of all his many oral health issues and garbling his voice.

Global News Interview: Emergency Dentist During Covid 19 Outbreak

Posted on March 25, 2020

On Wednesday, March 25th Rachael D’Amore telephoned Dr Natalie Archer DDS to ask about dentistry in the Age of Coronovirus. Like so many other Canadians, dentists have also had to adjust to a new business reality amid the pandemic that has now closed most dental clinics in Ontario. Yet we search for ways to be productive and helpful.

“I think dentists, in general, feel helpless and frustrated,” Dr Archer is quoted saying in the article, and she continued. “We are health professionals too. We’re educated. We’re willing to help but, in a lot of ways, our hands are tied right now.” Dentists have a unique perspective on social distancing in the workplace; its more difficult here. Dentists and hygienists sit right beside patients; new distancing protocols amid the pandemic are particularly difficult to work around.

What exactly does ‘Emergency Care Only’ mean for dentists and patients?

Provinces and local governments have imposed increasingly tight controls to try and curtail the spread of COVID-19 and they ultimately encourage as many people as possible to stay home. Quebec and Ontario, for example, have ordered all non-essential businesses to close, but the rule vary and are slightly different in each jurisdiction.

Those deemed essential are somewhat obvious; health-care workers, first responders, suppliers of critical goods like food and medicine, and utility workers are encouraged to go to work and help save lives and keep society functioning. So where does that leave dentists?

Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia have ordered a pause on “non-essential” dental services like teeth cleaning, teeth whitening obviously and other cosmetic procedures. Only emergency care, like facial trauma or pain that can’t be managed with antibiotics or over-the-counter medications, can be performed. Dentists in other provinces, like Manitoba, have taken it upon themselves to put similar measures in place for their residents. But even then, there are risks.

“We have to set a high bar for emergencies in dentistry because it’s such high risk. We’re one of the most at risk in this,” said Dr Natalie Archer. “We’re still learning about the virus, but we definitely know it’s spread through things like mucus and saliva. These are things that dentists are intimately connected with… There’s no social distancing when it comes to treating patients in dentistry.”

The respiratory virus is spread mainly from person-to-person, either by close contact or “respiratory droplets.” So when an infected person coughs or sneezes, if the resulting droplets end up in the mouths or noses of people nearby, either by inhalation or contact, those people can become infected.

In health care, increased risk comes with increased protocols. In Ontario for example the Royal College of Dental Surgeons (RCDSO) has clamped down on what constitutes an emergency dental situation and has issued directives on screening procedures as well as which tools to use when. They stipulate that only emergency care, like facial trauma or pain that can’t be managed with antibiotics or over-the-counter medications, can be performed.

What is an essential service?

Rachael D’Amore’s reporting also shared some interesting data. Between 2017 and 2018 there were over 93,000 dental visits at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Dentistry, which allow students to treat patients. Of those, 4,000 were considered emergency dental visits. So based on that ratio you can see there’s a demand that will not be abated by stay-at-home social directives. Some dentistry is essential.

Readers should know that infection control in dentistry is already at a high professional standard. Sterilizers are tested every day, there are chemical indicators that show that everything’s been sterilized properly, there’s tracking of every instrument, everyone’s wearing the proper PPE (personal protective equipment),” he said. Infection control protocol standards for dentistry are incredibly high. But that efficiency doesn’t negate the fact that dentists need to be in close contact with patients to do the job.

Sterilization of equipment happens routinely in autoclave at Archer Dental Rosedale

“The primary thing is to keep people safe and healthy but you also really have to keep them out of hospitals unless they absolutely need to be there — the system’s already facing a burden.”

Archer Dental Emergency Dental Service in Toronto

Archer Dental patients can set up phone-call screening and counseling or FaceTime a dentist for certain inquiries. We offer emergency dental services such as it abides with RCDSO’s new required safety practices, but we can also provide some level of comfort to patients locked away at home who need advice, said Archer. Patients are encouraged to call their office and their calls will be received and scheduled accordingly.

“I think it makes patients realize what is a real emergency right now,” Dr Archer said. “As a dentist, we have to assume that everybody we come into contact with has COVID-19. So that’s the level of care we take when we decide what’s an emergency.”

The article ends with Dr Archer’s quote; “There’s a very good chance that you’re not going to get into a dental office for a check-up for quite some time, so this is the best opportunity to take care of ourselves from a preventative side,” Natalie said. “People always tell me they don’t have time to floss. Guess what? You’ve got time. You’ve got more time than you know what to do with. Now’s the time to floss.”