Improving the lives of our patients: one patient at a time!
Happy January!
Happy New Year! Welcome to 2021!
When we think about a “new year”, we look forward to all great things with new beginnings. After the past nine months, we look forward to the beginning of the end of this pandemic, with the vaccine starting to be accessible to everyone in the next few months. The vaccine will be the new beginning to the end of the pandemic that made us all appreciate many of the things we took for granted. This new beginning is usually a time for resolutions, although most of us make then break many of our resolutions in January. Somehow, this year may be a little different. It may be time to consider resolutions that will improve not only your oral health, but your general health that will continue throughout the year.
Let us all commit to flossing (or trying to get something between your teeth that will help prevent a buildup of plaque, gingivitis, and tooth decay). Moving the floss to a place you are more likely to see it will help remind you to use it. Out of sight, out of mind, and floss in a drawer does no one any good. Need a recommendation? Give us a call!
Schedule your dental visits because, even though many of you are working from home, we still need to schedule dental (and medical) appointments to keep on the health track. We usually try to schedule your preventive visits prior to you leaving the office. With COVID protocols in place, we may contact you after you leave to schedule preventive and any other necessary restorative visits. If you have a dental benefit, you are eligible for two preventive visits a year. At a preventive visit, we evaluate every aspect of your mouth for things that should be there and things that should not. If you do not use this benefit, it is lost. Since it is the start of a New Year, if you haven’t scheduled an appointment for a preventive visit, consider doing it this month. If you do not have a dental benefit, ask us about our Dental Priority Platinum Plan, which is an in-house membership program that will allow you dental preventive services and more. Taking care of smaller issues is better than waiting for them to be massive problems.
New Year, new you! Consider quitting some of your habits that are truly deleterious to your health, such as smoking. Breaking a habit is much easier than starting a new one (ahem---like flossing daily). It is not easy to stop smoking, but it is possible. Smoking and tobacco causes teeth staining, bad breath, gum disease, oral cancer, lung issues, and dry mouth. As we follow the public health guidelines of mask wearing, dry mouth is rampant and, in addition to smoking, is causing harm to oral tissues. Resolve to quit this year for the benefit of your overall health.
Clenching or grinding? We have seen so many cases of cracked teeth due to the pandemic. Everyone is under some form stress. Many of us are taking it out on our teeth. Having an occlusal guard fabricated, to grind on plastic and not enamel will help your situation. Before it causes irreversible damage to your oral structures, consider an occlusal guard or bruxism appliance.
Our diets have changed during this pandemic. Many of us have gained weight due to increased consumption of sugars (and alcohol). Obesity is one of the diseases that are susceptible to coronavirus. Soda is a huge culprit in causing hidden calories and dental decay. Every time you sip soda, it washes over your teeth, feeding the bacteria that live in your mouth. With the mask, causing the oral tissues to be drier than usual, the sugars are more detrimental in causing dental decay. Soda is a difficult habit to break, but it can be done! Drinking an occasional soda is not horrible, but consider drinking it through a straw and rinsing your mouth out with water after you drink your favorite beverage. Did you know that alcohol has a high amount of sugar? The sugar in alcohol will react the same way to the bacteria in your mouth. Remember, everything in moderation.
New year, new habits. Consider adding a mile of walking to your schedule each week. This is an easy way to get your body moving and help your overall health. The pandemic has made many of us more homebodies, because we are following the guidelines of public health professionals. Walking is the easiest form of exercise and it not only is good for your body, it is good for your mind. Think about a socially distanced walk in the park! Enjoy some outdoor time and see the beauty of nature in all of her seasons. You can always increase your goal of walking more than a mile, especially if you are enjoying the great outdoors!
We all look forward to this New Year of 2021 with renewed hope of health. Start by giving our office a call to set up an appointment for your preventive visit or if you have been experiencing any twinges. Heading into 2021, we look forward to taking care of your oral health needs with our uncompromised safety. We are here for you!
COVID-19 Update: What is new in our office!
We are thrilled to announce that we have added another layer of safety protection to our practice: a hypochlorous acid fogger.
Hypochlorous acid has been used as a disinfectant in hospitals for years. In addition, it is used to sanitize foods such as fruits and vegetables (the spray used on the veggies in the grocery store is not water--it is hypochlorous acid), in eye care products, and in wound care, Hypochlorous acid is currently used in restaurants, food & beverage processing, livestock, agriculture, hospitals, schools, water treatment, and pharmaceutical manufacturing. Recently, you may have seen the fogging machines with hypochlorous acid used to disinfect cruise ships and airplanes.
Hypochlorous acid is produced naturally by the white blood cells and is used to kill invading microbial pathogens. It is non-toxic and non-hazardous. Hypochlorous acid (HOCl) fits into the CDC requirements for an ideal disinfectant because it is an effective broad-spectrum antimicrobial agent that is odorless, fast drying, environmentally friendly, and it is easy to use.
We performed hours of research to include this additional product in our already high level of infection control protocol. We not only fog the operatory after we complete any procedure, prior to using additional disinfectant products, but we fog ourselves. Please feel free to ask about our infection control protocol. 😷
COVID-19 Update: What to expect when you visit our office!
You may see some changes when it is time for your next appointment. We made these changes to help protect our patients, our families and ourselves. One of the many different "looks" will be Margaret and I are now sporting face shields and different style masks.
According to the State of Illinois and the Village of Lincolnwood, face coverings (masks or scarves) are required when entering any business. We will ask you to wear your mask upon entry to the office.
In addition:
• We will communicate with you before your appointment to ask some screening questions. You will be receiving an email with a link to a form to fill out. It will automatically and safely be sent to our office. Here is the link: https://us.patientriver.com/donigerdental You’ll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office.
• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. We will have disposable gloves available to you, as well.
• You may notice our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children’s toys and other items, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect. Our signature chocolate will also be missing for a while.
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. We plan to have you let us know when you are in our parking lot. Again, since we both may be back treating a patient, we will call you once we are able to get to the phone. Once the office is clear of the previous patient, we will let you know it is time for you to come up to see us! As per CDC guidelines, we will not be allowing anyone in our reception area without an appointment. Masks will be required for entry into the building, as per State of Illinois and Village of Lincolnwood guidelines.
• We will be allowing greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, therefore our appointments will be have more time between procedures to allow for our new engineering changes.
We thank you for your continued trust and confidence and look forward to seeing everyone soon!
Please feel free to contact us either through our website, via email (drsheri@donigerdental.com), via our Facebook page messenger, or simply leave a voice message at (847) 677-1101. If you need us, we will be available to you for telemedicine, via What's App, Facebook Messenger, Skype and Zoom,
Thank you for your understanding and patience during this unprecedented time. We will get through this together! Stay safe, stay healthy!
COVID-19 Update
October 2020 UPDATE: Even though the State of Illinois is in the next phase of reopening, the SARS-CoV-19 virus (coronavirus) has not gone away. We still need to take all the same precautions (wearing a mask, social distancing, hand washing, and following all Illinois Public Health guidelines.
If you have visited one of the hot spots, as designated by Cook Counth and the public health officials, please let us know. You will need to quarantine for two weeks prior to visiting our practice. Thank you for your understanding with this safety measure. We are trying to protect all our patients, as well as our team.
If you experience a fever or chills, sore throat, cough, or difficulty breathing, please contact your primary care healthcare professional.
The CDC has also listed some additonal symptoms to look out for: muscle or body aches, headache, repeat shaking with chills, and a loss of taste or smell.
As of June 27, 2020, the CDC has added additional symptoms: loss of hearing, rash, congestion or runny nose, nausea and diarrhea.
We would like to remind all of our patients that your health and safety are our priority. Please remember to:
--Clean your hands often. Wash hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds. Use sanitizer when washing is not accessible.
--Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
--Practice social distancing (6 feet of distance between people). Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
--Maintain six feet physical distance in public spaces.
--Stay home if you are sick and do not return to work until at least 24 hours after you no longer have a fever without fever-reducing medications.
--Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue or in the crook of your arm, and throw away used tissue.
--Use disinfectant wipes or sprays to clean frequently touched surfaces at home and work. The EPA has a new app that will list disinfectents that are effective on the human coronavirus.
Several states are included in a self-quarantine status upon entering Cook County. If you have traveled to any of these states or have been in contact with anyone who traveled from these states, please let us know prior to your appointment.
We care about each of you and hope that you and your family will remain in good health during this difficult time.
Please feel free to contact us either through our website, via email (drsheri@donigerdental.com) via our Facebook page messenger, or simply leave a voice message at (847) 677-1101. If you need us, we will be available to you for teleconferencing, via What's App, Facebook Messenger, Skype and Zoom,
Thank you for your understanding and patience during this unprecedented time.
Please remember for everyone's health and safety:
Please call the office at 847 677 1101 when you arrive for your appointment. We will confirm your arrival, check you in, and will let you know when to come up to the office. Please wait for us to let you know the office is ready for you. We are performing enhanced cleaning procedures in the entire office, and need a few extra minutes to prepare for your arrival. We do not want you waiting in the hall. Also, as per Illinois and Village of Lincolnwood mandate, face coverings are required to enter the building, our office and when you leave the office. Thank you for your cooperation to help keep everyone safe and healthy!
We are safe! We are here for you!
The start of benefit year is here!
For those of you who are on dental benefit, the new year brings a new dental benefit allocation. Need a preventive appointment? Do you have any dental issues you have been waiting on? Now is the perfect time to schedule! Don’t leave your dental dollars behind. Give us a call!
Infection Control has always been our priority!
We have always followed the utmost in infection control for the safety of both you, our patients, and ourselves. We are continually upgrading our infection control procedures to ensure everyone's safety.
Please watch our Facebook page for updates and information about our new infection control systems!
Take care of you!
Our most important jobs right now are to stay home, stay safe and stay healthy. We are not only protecting ourselves but people around us. With social distancing in full effect, it is more important than ever to practice good oral hygiene and prevent cavities. Remind your family about brushing for two minutes two times a day and flossing once every day. Using an antibacterial mouthwash is also a good precaution.
We have received questions about disinfecting your toothbrush.
Want to disinfect your toothbrush? You can soak it in an antibacterial mouthwash for 30 seconds. For a homemade alternative, mix 2 teaspoons of baking soda in a cup of water.. Don't forget to change your toothbrush every three months, especially during these times of staying at home.
Take a tour of our office!
We have created a virtual tour of the office for those who are interested in joining our practice but COVID may be keeping you away. It is always nice to see where you are going! Check it out on Google Earth!
So honored.........
Our practice has been honored again as one of the Top Dentists in the Chicagoland area for 2020!
Dr. Sheri was honored as the Lincolnwood Madeline Grant Volunteer of the Year for 2020. She has over thirty years of volunteering for the Village and beyond.
Our practice was spotlighted in the Village of Lincolnwood Business Connections Newsletter for the 2020 March/April issue (yes, at the begining of the pandemic, but we are still excited to be there!)
No dental benefit? No problem!!!
We have an affordable in-office yearly dental membership plan
Professional quality dental care is a necessity for everyone, although being able to achieve it has not always been within reach, especially for those without dental benefit. Our Dental Priority Platinum solves that problem! We have a variety of plans, starting with two preventive visits a year, inclucing oral examinations, four bitewing radiographs, or full mouth radiograph as necessary, and two fluoride varnish treatments, all at a 25% savings to you and your family. Major and cosmetic dental treatments are 18% off, with no deductible or annual maximum. Each family member has different needs, so we offer different plans. We are unable to combine these plans if you have a current dental benefit..