Each year, respiratory viruses are responsible for millions of illnesses and thousands of hospitalizations and deaths in the United States. In addition to the virus that causes COVID-19, there are many other types of respiratory viruses, including influenza (flu) and…
On July 23, 2024, Cal/OSHA’s new rule to protect employees from unsafe indoor heat took effect. California Code of Regulations, Title 8, Section 3396 – Heat Illness Prevention in Indoor Places of Employment requires most employers where the indoor temperature…
It seems like almost every other day, the national media reports on a new data breach. From large corporations to mom-and-pop local businesses, hackers do not discriminate on their targets. Small and mid-sized businesses like dental practices are often targeted…
Recently, a patient filed a complaint with his state dental board against his dentist for not giving the patient back his extracted teeth. Which begs the question… how should dental healthcare personnel (DHCP) manage extracted teeth? OSHA does not prohibit…
According to an announcement by the Dental Board of California (DBC), beginning August 1, 2024, all California dispensers of controlled substances will be required to report dispensations to the Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES) using the American…
As COVID cases surge across the country, California dental employers must continue to follow Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 return-to-work criteria as found in Title 8 California Code of Regulations Section 3205 (Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Prevention Standard). Effective January 2024, the California Department of…
A research study published in the June 2024 edition of the Journal of the American Dental Association (JADA) investigated current trends in dentistry for maintaining water quality in dental unit waterlines (DUWLs). While the majority (85%) of respondents recognized the…
On May 20, 2024, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a final rule that will update the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to improve the amount and quality of information on chemical labels and safety data sheets (SDSs)…
Sterilizer monitoring in a dental office, when properly implemented, is an important part of infection control verification. Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Dental Association (ADA) recommend, and most state dental boards require, dental…
In February 2024, the Change Healthcare cyberattack crippled healthcare and billing information operations nationwide. Investigations into the cyberattack have revealed evidence that the hack started when cybercriminals entered a server that lacked a basic form of security: multifactor authentication. Being…
