Measles is a highly contagious virus that lives in the nose and throat mucus of an infected person. It can spread to others through coughing and sneezing. If other people breathe the contaminated air or touch an infected surface and…
Saturday, April 27th is National Prescription Drug Take Back Day According to the 2017 National Survey on Drug Use and Health, 6 million Americans misused controlled prescription drugs, and the majority of abused prescription drugs were obtained from family and friends, often from the home medicine cabinet…
Establishing and cultivating a culture of safety and well-being in the workplace is an integral part of an office health and safety policy. And it starts with valuing employees and treating them with respect, especially since most OSHA inspections are triggered…
All dental professionals are required to report suspected signs of abuse and neglect in patients, which is often referred to as “mandatory reporting”, and to be trained on the reporting requirements. To help ensure that dental professionals are properly trained, the American…
In the last 10-20 years, the misuse and diversion of prescription opioids has risen to epidemic levels in the United States.Dentists can play a major role in recognizing and preventing prescription opioid misuse. Many organizations offer tools to help healthcare…
In late February 2019, the California Legislature passed Assembly Bill (AB) 149, which is expected to be signed into law next week and delays implementation of AB 1753 from 2019 to 2021. The bill includes an urgency clause meaning the…
Two main regulatory agencies, the Dental Board of California (DBC)and Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA), require employee education and training in a dental office. However, they have separate requirements with very different objectives. Employee safety is the sole focus of Cal/OSHA…
Proper hand hygiene is considered to be the single most important measure for preventing pathogen transmission in healthcare settings. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that each year nearly 2 million patients in the US acquire an infection…
In July 2017, the Federal Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) new ruletook effect which requires dental offices to reduce the discharge of mercury and other metals from dental offices down the sewer drain to publically owned treatment works (POTWs). One of the…
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) exempts dentistry, as a low-risk industry (NAICS Code – 6212), from maintaining the OSHA Form 300 Log and posting the OSHA Form 300A Summary. Businesses with more than 10 employees in a…
