Update Letter From Dr. Forster:
Good News! Re-opening on Friday, May 1, 2020

April 29, 2020

Greetings from Dr. Forster!

The Stay Home, Save Lives campaign here in Oregon has done a great job of slowing the spread of COVID-19. On April 23rd, Governor Kate Brown authorized re-opening of non-urgent medical services beginning May 1st. This is great news for our community!

Our community has been through a lot over the last few months, and all of us are looking forward to resuming our lives. While many things have changed, one thing has remained the same: our commitment to safety. Infection control has always been a top priority for us 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's both safe and comfortable. We want to tell you about the infection control procedures we follow in our practice to keep patients and our team safe.

Our office follows infection control recommendations made by the American Dental Association (ADA), the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). We follow the activities of these agencies so that we are up-to-date on any new rulings or guidance that may be issued. We do this to make sure that our infection control procedures are current and adhere to each agencies' recommendations.

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

• Our office will communicate with you beforehand to ask some screening questions. You'll be asked those same questions again when you are in the office.
• We ask that you wait outside the office door until a team member can walk each patient in.
• Part of our screening process includes taking your temperature when you arrive.
• We have hand sanitizer that we will ask you to use when you enter the office. You will also find some in the reception area and other places in the office for you to use as needed.
• You may see that our waiting room will no longer offer magazines, children's toys and so forth, since those items are difficult to clean and disinfect.
• Appointments will be managed to allow for social distancing between patients. That might mean that you're offered fewer options for scheduling your appointment.
• We will do our best to allow greater time between patients to reduce waiting times for you, as well as to reduce the number of patients at any one time.
• We ask you to please show up on time so our efforts to optimize the schedule will be successful.
• It is mandatory that everyone wears a mask, unless they are actively having a dental procedure performed. Please wear your mask if you have one.
• We ask that you only bring yourself to your appointment unless a caregiver is needed (child, special needs, etc.).

We look forward to seeing you again and are happy to answer any questions you may have about the steps we take to keep you, every patient and our team safe. To make an appointment, please call our office at 503-533-2330.

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

Dr. Forster