Reopening Notice
reopening notice dr group photo

To Patients and Families of Graber and Gyllenhaal Orthodontics:

 

We are happy to announce that we will be reopening for visits beginning May 18, 2020! The Illinois Department of Public Health has now given guidance for resuming some types of dental care in Illinois. We are so excited to see our patients again! As always, the health of our patients and team is our top priority. We have made enhancements to our office procedures in order to provide a raised level of safety for everyone who enters our office, consistent with new Covid-19 related healthcare guidelines. Please carefully review these new procedures, as they will pertain to all patients during this time. We will be reaching out to patients who are due for appointments over the next few weeks. Please be patient with us!

Please check in to the appointment from your car by texting the Vernon Hills office at 847-807-3694 and the Glenview office at 847-807-4726.

 

Keeping Our Patients Safe

The health of our patients and team remain our top priority. We have made enhancements to our office policies and procedures for everyone who enters our office, consistent with new Covid-19 related healthcare guidelines.”

 

Only patients may enter the office and all persons entering the office must enter wearing a facial covering. We will be screening all entrants into the office (including our team members) for temperature and signs of illness prior to seating in the clinic.

Parents, friends and significant others are asked to wait in their cars for the duration of the appointment. For teens and younger patients, we will provide a “take home summary” of your child’s visit after each appointment and instructions on scheduling the next appointment. We will also be available to answer residual post-visit questions by email. On a predetermined case-by-case basis, we will consider allowing a parent into the office reception area (for example, in the case of child patients younger than 7 years or children with special needs). We are limiting the number of people in the office at this time. We will reach out after the appointment to schedule the next indicated appointment.

We will require that you reschedule your appointment if the patient or anyone in the family has been sick with a fever, cough, flu-like symptoms, or any of the CDC reported symptoms of COVID-19, or has a recent positive diagnosis for COVID-19 within the past 14 days. We will be strict in asking perceived sick patients to reschedule; therefore, if you or your child is sick or might appear to be sick upon entry into the office, please call to reschedule.

If you perceive you are in a high risk group for COVID-19 exposure, like those over the age of 60 and those with the following health concerns: heart disease, lung disease, kidney disease, diabetes or any auto-immune disorders, we suggest you consult with your physician prior to your appointment.

Before each appointment, please brush your teeth at home. In addition, we will require all patients to swish for 30 seconds with a disinfecting hydrogen peroxide oral rinse. This rinse is completely safe and available over the counter.  Hand cleaning with monitored wash or hand sanitizer prior to seating and after appointments is also required.

Please use the bathroom at home before coming to the office.  Our restrooms will be available only in emergencies. 

We are continuing to take stringent infection control measures to sterilize instruments and sanitize the clinic. In addition, we have added a Hyper HEPA air purifying system to our offices. Our team will be wearing extra PPE and all team members will wear a mask at all times, including admin. Please advise your child that this is for safety and that we are still smiling under them.

For a period of time, we will be avoiding use of a dental handpiece (a.k.a. dental drill) as this has the potential to produce aerosol. This means we may need to leave some dental glue on your teeth after removing braces, expanders or Invisalign attachments. We will remove residual glue at a future date, depending on healthcare governing body recommendations.

The measures summarized in this information update are being taken for your safety.  At any time when you leave your home there is a risk of exposure to illness.  In our office we have always focused on the use of healthcare universal precautions as a protection for our patients and office team.

We have modified our scheduling protocols to decrease the number of patients in the office at a time. Please be patient with us when it comes to scheduling. Late patients will be rescheduled. In the next few weeks we will be contacting all patients who are due for an appointment.  As always, you can also email us to ask questions.

Please watch for update emails from our office as the recommendations for healthcare patients and caregivers have been changing–and will continue to do so. The health of our patients and team is our top priority.  Please bear with us as we work together during this unique time.

 

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