What You Need to Know to Mitigate Risk for Your Practice

When it comes to practice management, there are numerous moving parts demanding equal attention.

Dentists can understandably become overwhelmed trying to keep up with financial responsibilities, staff satisfaction, evolving research and technological advancements. Plus, infection control regulations are often unclear. This is especially true for dental unit waterline compliance.

 

Not Just a Patient Problem

Until recent decades, waterline compliance was not given the attention that we now know it deserves. However, in 1996, John Barbeau released a study highlighting some misconceptions dentistry had widely accepted. Because of his research, we now know that the problem of dental unit waterlines is an inherent engineering problem, and because of this, your waterlines are not sterile, and by default require maintenance. In fact, bacteria can reach 200,000 CFUs/mL in less than five days in brand-new waterlines using sterile water.1

In 2003, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) adopted the EPA’s standard for clean drinking water and said that water used in dental procedures would be less than or equal to 500 colony forming units CFUs/mL.2

The CDC has issued public health alerts through their Health Alert Network (HAN) concerning outbreaks traced back to contaminated dental unit waterlines.3 Notably, non-compliance has led to practice shutdowns and litigations in places like Atlanta in 20154 and Anaheim in 20165, where hundreds of children were affected by dental unit waterline infection outbreaks. These incidents underscore the importance of adhering to guidelines set by organizations like the CDC, the American Dental Association (ADA), and the Association for Dental Safety (ADS), formerly known as the Organization for Safety, Asepsis & Prevention (OSAP).

 

Real World Consequences

Neglecting waterline maintenance has implications beyond patient health. Financially, non-compliance can be devastating. Practices may face expensive legal battles, fines, and loss of patient trust. A shutdown due to non-compliance can result in fines of up to $10,000 per day until failing operatories are successfully remediated. Some practices have been forced to close temporarily or permanently, leading to substantial revenue loss and damage to their professional reputation. Moreover, the emotional toll on dental professionals can be significant. The stress of potential litigation and fear of harming patients can affect mental well-being, potentially leading to burnout and decreased job satisfaction.

 

Successful Compliance for Practices

The good news is that dental practices are finding waterline compliance success, unburdening themselves from the stress of real risk associated with waterline neglect.

The most successful practices have adopted the 3-step proven protocol: shocking, treating, and testing.6

The driving factor behind the 3-step protocol is testing.

Quickpass in-office dental water testing

Quickpass in-office dental water test logo

 

Without testing, there is no way to know if you are delivering safe water to your patients.

Testing also provides the documentation necessary to protect your practice if an infection is thought to be linked to your office.

 

Driving Success for Your Practice

Now that you know what practices are doing to ensure their waterline compliance success, it’s important to understand how they’re doing it without burdening their staff or their wallets. Office staff are often stretched thin, and waterline compliance can easily be placed on the back burner, especially if it’s associated with an extra expense for the practice.

However, 90.3% of dental professionals believe clear visibility in waterline compliance is important to successfully achieve waterline compliance. So, what if there was a tool that put time back on your staff’s calendars, mitigated risk for your practice, and was available to you for free? Well, now there is.

 

Meet the ProEdge Compliance Dashboard

The ProEdge Dashboard helps train and support your team in staying consistently compliant. The Dashboard is a digital assistant for your dental assistants so they don’t feel overwhelmed and can succeed in reaching compliance for your office.

The ProEdge Dashboard features:

  • On-Hand Digital Assistance
    Support your dental assistants with an intuitive digital tool that provides focused next steps, so your staff always knows the next correct action to take.
  • Automated Reminders
    Sends reminders for testing schedules, failure notification, remediation steps and more, ensuring that no deadlines are missed.
  • Training Resources
    Offers training modules that help staff understand the importance of waterline maintenance and how to implement best practices in your office.
  • Unparalleled Support
    Our team of safe water experts take the guessing out of waterline compliance so your staff can feel confident in the steps they’re taking every day to successfully maintain your waterlines.

79.6% of practices using the ProEdge Dashboard have seen improvement in their compliance ratings. 

If you’re looking to get started, you’re in the right spot. You can start testing your operatories with the #1 most trusted in-office water test, QuickPass. You can easily log your QuickPass results for free in the Dashboard, allowing you to successfully improve your waterline compliance.

“[ProEdge has] helped so much in getting our lines in order. If I call, [they] are all so nice and pleasant, & I have never felt foolish for asking any questions. [They] are my security blanket for waterline maintenance.”
– Laurie M., Dental Professional

Combining waterline maintenance with the ProEdge Dashboard provides an all-in-one compliance solution that mitigates risk for your practice, decreases the time it takes to achieve waterline compliance, and provides valuable resources and training to your staff. By prioritizing waterline compliance, dental practices can enhance patient trust, protect their reputation, and ultimately ensure the longevity and success of their practice.

 

Shop all ProEdge products on Burkhart Toolkit 

 

What’s Lurking in Your Waterlines?

Article written and submitted by ProEdge.

Published in Catalyst – Q4 Catalyst

 

  1. J. Barbeau et al., “Multiparametric Analysis of Waterline Contamination in Dental Units,” Applied and Environmental Microbiology 62, no. 11 (1996): 3954-3959.
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Infection Prevention Checklist for Dental Settings: Basic Expectations for Safe Care,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, March 2016
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Outbreaks of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria Infections Highlight Importance of Maintaining and Monitoring Dental Waterlines,” Health Alert Network (HAN) Health Advisory, October 31, 2022, 
  4. G. Peralta et al., “Notes from the Field: Mycobacterium abscessus Infections Among Patients of a Pediatric Dentistry Practice — Georgia, 2015,” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 65, no. 13 (2016): 355–356.
  5. Jasjit Singh et al., “Outbreak of Invasive Nontuberculous Mycobacterium (NTM) Infections Associated With a Pediatric Dental Practice,” Open Forum Infectious Diseases 5, no. suppl_1 (November 2018): S29.
  6. Nancy Dewhirst, RDH, BS, and John A. Molinari, PhD, “Treating and Monitoring Dental Water,” 2018.

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