Continuing the series of articles from
around the world, Claudio Sorrentino reviews a day in the life of his
practice in Buenos Aires. We offer a wide range of dental procedures
designed to restore, maintain and transform patient´s smiles with a very
personal approach. This small and cosy clinic is located between the
Palermo and Recoleta neighborhoods in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The team consists of three dentists in
total, with Dr. Daniel Zambanini handling orthodontic cases, Dr. Nicolás
Maturano specialising in endodontist and implants and I focus on
restorative, preventive and cosmetic treatments. We also have a dental
assistant who works with all the dentists to help deliver treatment and
prepare the surgeries for patients.
Even though the practice officially
opens at 10AM, we usually start at 8AM to provide time for busy
patients. Throughout our office we employ the latest dental equipment
available on the market, with cutting edge technology maximising
effectiveness and safety of treatment, as well as efficiency of our
daily processes. We are currently in the process of acquiring a new
dental microscope to provide even better service to our patients.
On average, practices in Argentina
probably see around 20 patients a day. The biggest challenge faced by
dental professionals here is to be able to provide the best possible
dentistry within a medical system that puts many demands on
practitioners and their affiliates. The main problem we have to overcome
when working within the medical and dental plans available is working
with lots of patients in little time and sometimes with poor materials,
without compromising on quality of care provided. In our country, the
professional is also responsible for all treatment delivered for up to
three years after completion, so if any clinical issues arise from a
procedure in this time, we are obligated to offer a solution at no extra
cost.
All patients at our practice pay
privately for their dental care, but some dental plans can subsidise a
proportion of the costs, which people would receive as an annual
reimbursement. Dental treatment in Argentina is quite expensive due to a
high percentage of imported materials.
At Dental Palermo, we are unique in that
we strive to provide a more personalized service in a friendlier
environment. To this end, we usually book no more than five appointments
per day, which give us the time to conduct complete examinations and
give each patient our undivided attention. We see only private patients
who really appreciate the effort and time we dedicate to ensuring a
great dental patient experience with safe and state of the art
facilities.
Infection control. We
use a combination of physical and chemical processes in order to ensure
high standards of disinfection. All instruments are transported from the
surgery in a stainless steel tray and placed in a container with water
and two percent glutaraldehyde for 20 minutes before being used.
After use, instruments are taken to the
decontamination room where they are manually scrubbed, rinsed, dried and
bagged, before transferred to the clean area. The professional who
packages the instruments is responsible for witnessing and ensuring the
effectiveness of sterilization cycle within the computerized vacuum
autoclave. We also have two washer disinfectors and ultrasound equipment
that we use throughout the decontamination procedure.
Disposable items and deposited in
biohazard containers are disposed of by a company that specifically
handles these wastes. Dental assistants and dentists can perform any of
these tasks. We try to minimize cross infection and environmental
surface contamination with surfaces barriers for the digital X-ray
sensor, triple syringe waterline, home-volume evacuator, saliva
evacuators and head rest covers.
All dental units are cleaned with
disinfectant wipes between patients and at the end of the day. We comply
with all regulations set by the American Dental Association and the
Centre for Infectious Disease Control and Prevention guidelines (CDC).
Thus, we only use consumable products and brands that have been approved
by the CDC, as well as disposable gloves for all clinical professionals
and other protective clothing like face masks and googles.
Patient awareness. At
the practice we work with a mixture of local and international patients,
who are mostly from West Europe and the United States. More and more
people request clear and concise information about our sterilization and
biosecurity measures at the clinics we are more than happy to explain
any and every process. Each month, we send a newsletter informing
patients about technological advances at the practice, as well as any
general developments or news from within dentistry so that they receive a
top quality service and remain informed of any changes.
