Dear Patients,

We hope this letter finds you and your family in good health. Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and we are all looking forward to resuming our normal habits and routines. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same - our commitment to your safety.

Infection control has always been top priority in our practice and you may have seen this during your visits to our office. Our infection control processes are made so that when you receive care, it is both safe and comfortable.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), New York State Dental Association (NYSADA), the U. S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), New York State Department of Health (DOH), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We closely follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued.

You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients and staff.

As required by new health and safety policies in New York State, we will require all patients to wear a mask or face covering when arriving for their appointment. If you do not have one, we will provide one for you at no cost. Patients and escorts will not be allowed to wait in the waiting room. When you arrive at our office, please call the front desk and you will be invited in when it is time for your appointment. Your temperature will be taken with a contactless infra-red thermometer, and we will be asking New York State standard screening questions. All information obtained during your health screening will be saved in your HIPAA protected patient file. We have hand sanitizer that we will provide you when you enter the office.

To the best of our ability, we send all or most of the necessary forms via email ahead of your arrival to the office to allow a contact less experience. If a form needs to be completed upon your arrival, we will provide you with a clean writing utensil and place to fill the form out.

Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. We will do our best to allow greater time between appointments to reduce the number of patients in the reception area at any one time. That might mean that you are offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.

We are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, and every patient safe in our practice. To make an appointment, please call the Amherst office at 716-689-8882 or the West Seneca office at 716-668-4646 or e-mail us at applegatedental@gmail.com or smile@amherstdental.com.

Thank you for being our patient. We value your trust and loyalty and look forward to welcoming back our patients, neighbors, and friends.

Sincerely,
Applegate Dental and Amherst Dental Group