Association of Alberta Dental Assistants

Your participation and feedback by December 11th is essential! RDAs across Alberta are invited to participate in an important survey being conducted by our national association the Canadian Dental Assistants Association. As CDN DAA continues to provide data on behalf of the profession, the CDN DAA has developed a short survey regarding Covid-19 and its impact on dental assistants as they navigate the Covid-19 pandemic. CDN DAA is requesting that all dental assistants across Canada take 5 minutes to participate in this survey. Please share this post and encourage your colleagues to respond to the survey by December 11, 2020. The survey is completely anonymous. English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/KX9GK28

The clock is ticking down to the beginning of our next professional associations membership year beginning December 1st. Our Society partners, the Local associations in Alberta, have been serving the dental assistant community for 63 years and they want to continue providing our community with services, supports, benefits, relevant professional development, networking, public service, advocacy, representation on provincial and national boards and committees and opportuniti...es for personal growth and development of the individual. Many who follow our Facebook page and website have not yet joined our professional family. We need you to consider becoming an active member of the Local/AADA/CDN DAA and support the tri-level professional associations in supporting you and dental assistants across our region. Email, fax, mail or phone in your membership payment today and start the 2021 term with the gift of enhancing your career and your professional life. Application and payment forms can be found on the Local websites: www.edaa.ab.ca www.calgaryrda.ca Or email the [email protected] and we can send you an info package to get you started in joining our professional family of RDAs. Please share this message with your colleagues and help us help you throughout your career! See more

Dental Assistants may be confused by the alphabet soup of acronyms that we use to identify our professional organizations: CDN DAA, AADA, EDAA, CDAA, CADA and so on. What are the roles of these organizations and why should we support our professional associations at all levels: Local, Provincial and National? The attached information sheet explains the basic roles. If you want more information on any of these organizations please connect with us at [email protected] and ...we'll be happy to clarify or provide additional information. All Alberta RDA's must pay annual practice permit fees but this fee doesn't provide supports, services, benefits and most importantly, advocacy for the RDA. That is the role of associations and that makes it critical for all RDAs to be supportive members of their professional associations. Join today and invest in your professional future! See more

WHY YOU NEED TO JOIN YOUR ASSOCIATION's TODAY! Professional associations in dental assisting are critical for generating the energy, flow of ideas, and proactive work needed to maintain a healthy profession that advocates for the needs of its professionals. These organizations serve as the collective voice of our profession and perform that function that individuals in their separate capacity are unable to perform with credibility. When greater numbers unite in one voice, st...ronger and more powerful arguments can be advanced to achieve advocacy outcomes. Kudos to the professional registered dental assistants who are engaged, involved, and contributing members of our associations -- these RDAs are advocating for and advancing the profession of dental assisting and the oral healthcare we offer to our patients. The goal of advocacy efforts by professional associations is to educate all professional Dental Assistants, and the public about the importance of broad-base membership, creative ideas, esprit de corps, and energetic participation in helping the profession improve and move to higher levels. In prior eras, visionary dental nurses realized the need for associations in order to meet the changes occurring in the social, cultural, and economic sectors of their world. Elected association leaders today remain responsive to their members and incorporate members' input by devising new mechanisms to advance oral healthcare through the dental assisting profession, thus allowing members to contribute to the accountability and voice of the profession to society. The tri-level association year begins December 1st. To ensure that you don't miss out on a full year of services, supports, benefits, professional development, discounts and more....renew or join today! Membership information and forms/applications are available at www.edaa.ab.ca and at www.calgaryrda.ca We look forward to your participation in the business of our profession!

Many RDAs have never seen a case of Fluorosis. Here are examples of this condition.

The AADA would like to thank all the Alberta RDAs that have visited our website, liked our Facebook page and have joined our private group page in the past year. It is has been our goal to provide you with up to date resources relevant to your practice during the Covid 19 pandemic and to ensure that we support you when you have questions or concerns about applying that information to your practice. The reality is that many RDAs across Alberta have benefited from this work and... we ask that if you have not yet done so, please consider that now is the time to support your tri-level associations, who work together for your benefit, with your membership. The more RDAs who become tri-level members the better funded these organizations are to accelerate the initiatives and projects they are working on for our profession and our individual RDAs. We cannot serve you if you don't support us. We need YOU to make a difference for ALL of us. The new membership year begins on December 1st. Send us a quick email today and ask for an information package for your area of the province. Join our family of RDAs and become a participant in our professional community! Email us at [email protected] or click the link on the side of this page. See more

In honour of those who fought for and still fight for our freedom. We remember your sacrifices and thank you for your service.

A Message from the Canadian Dental Assistants Association: It is our intent to advise our industry counterparts, both at the regulatory and association levels, on the number of dental assistants that wish to uphold formal education of dental assistants across Canada and who oppose in-office training of clinical personnel being done independently by a dentist or other designated staff member without connecting that training to an accredited dental assistant training program. ...This is not only a matter of public protection but a matter of respect for the credentials and expertise of dental assisting program faculty and of certified and licensed dental assistants. For this reason, we developed a petition in both official languages. We encourage you to share this petition with your membership. The bilingual petition is live at the following link: https://www.ipetitions.com//recognized-education-for-all-o Should they wish to sign, we would ask that your members do so prior to September 30, 2020.

A review of oral cancer screening through observation.

Current Trends in Dentistry - Crown Art! Curious - how many Alberta dental practices have had requests from patients for artwork on prosthodontics or appliances?

Positive change and true progress requires that people be willing to look at a situation critically not emotionally. Humans are emotional creatures. This makes change difficult and slow, but not impossible. Sometimes it just takes a leap of faith. Take the leap...join us in the big pond of RDAs through professional association membership! Associations are our collective voice and our advocates. We support our profession and ourselves by supporting our associations. Contact us today 780-987-2022 [email protected] for more information on the importance of supporting our professional associations at all levels!.

RDAs from across the province of Alberta are encouraged to support their professional associations at every level to ensure stability, participation and advancement in dental assisting that will benefit all of us! To learn more contact us at [email protected] and tell us which area of the province you live in so we can provide you with more information.

Important Notice to Alberta RDAs: Join the discussion. Participate in the advocacy efforts of our provincial association. Attend the AADA AGM! Annual reports, elections and discussions will focus on the business of our profession. Pre-register by email to [email protected] or by phone at 780-987-2022 no later than September 25th so we can make arrangements for physical distancing at this event. Please give your name and AB RDA# so we can verify your eligibility to attend a...nd provide you with details about the exact location of this meeting. We will be meeting mid-province in Red Deer, a short drive from Edmonton or Calgary areas. This is your opportunity to meet the AADA Board of Directors and provide your personal feedback on issues of importance to our profession! We hope to see you there! See more

NOTE: Changes to temporary layoffs, group termination and variances took effect August 15 in Alberta. More changes to Employment Standards to take place November 1. The Government of Alberta has passed the Restoring Balance in Albertas Workplaces Act, which includes changes to employment standards rules that are intended to save employers time and money. Changes to temporary layoffs, group termination and variances took effect August 15. Several other changes t...o employment standards rules take effect November 1. Temporary layoffs not related to COVID-19 can now be 90 days total in a 120-day period (temporary layoffs due to COVID-19 can be a maximum of 180 days). Group termination requirements are being simplified: Employers must give the Minister of Labour and Immigration written notice of at least four weeks if they intend to layoff 50 or more employees at the same location in a four-week period. If employers cannot provide four weeks notice, they must provide notice as soon as possible. Employers are no longer required to give employees and unions notice of group termination, but employers must provide individual termination notice to employees. More flexible rules for Directors and Ministerial variances and exemptions are now permanently in place: Individual employers, employer groups or associations can now apply for either a Director or Ministerial variance or exemption. Ministerial variances and exemptions no longer have to have an expiry date, and can be renewed. Resources for employers & employees: Fact sheets are available online to help you understand the changes. You can also contact Alberta Employment Standards with questions about these changes. Alberta Employment Standards will be offering free online webinars. The first set of webinars will cover the changes to temporary layoffs, group termination, and variances. Webinars covering employment standards changes taking effect on November 1 will also be available. More information on these webinars will be sent at a later date.

The Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada has shared with the national oral health organizations a report published by McGill University entitled: Evidence to support safe return to clinical practice by oral health professionals in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic: A report prepared for the Office of the Chief Dental Officer of Canada. We are very pleased that our CDN DAA Vice President Dianne Hennig (Alberta Director on the Canadian Board) participated in the pr...oject on behalf of our members across Canada to share the RDA perspective and contribute to the information provided in the report. This document will be updated periodically in 2020 and 2021 and the Canadian Dental Assistants Association will continue to engage on these updates, as required. The report is currently publicly available, posted to the McGill University website at the following link: https://www.mcgill.ca//ocdoc_report_final_with_foreword_05

The COVID-19 pandemic is bringing new urgency to the debate over universal dental care in Canada. Oral health inequity has been growing during the Covid 19 pandemic. Many who may have had coverage through employment have lost their jobs and their benefits. Oral health problems can contribute to overall health condition and the implementation of universal dental care could be balanced by savings in general health costs through current government health programs To read the ...full article go to: https://globalnews.ca//report-says-universal-dental-care-w See more

Summary of NEWS ALERT: Alberta RDAs withdrew support for their only advocates! To read the full article click on this link /https://advocacyaada.files.wordpress.com//news-alert-alber... Many RDAs believe incorrectly that the College of Alberta Dental Assistants exists to serve and support them. The CADA has repeatedly affirmed that their role is public protection not protection for our profession or advocacy for the RDA. Service, support and advocacy for RDAs is the role of professional associations that we are now at risk of losing. How has this withdrawal affected advocacy and the future of our profession? It is hard to understand why RDAs have chosen to give away their opportunity for regional groups that provided a point of contact and have contributed so much to the 75 year history of advancement for dental assisting. Over the past 100 years we went from being ladies in attendance to a becoming a self-regulating, licensed and recognized profession in Alberta. The problem is that without the full support of RDAs in our province our profession is at high risk of losing our ability to advocate for and serve individual dental assistants and our profession as a whole. We are going to lose the opportunity to represent RDAs at the table with government and with employers if Alberta RDAs continue to withhold support for their only advocates. What needs to happen now? We need you to choose to support and participate in the tri-level professional associations. Dont lose your only advocates! There is no other way to maintain our credibility as oral health professionals, no other way to advance our profession and no other way to have a voice that will be heard by decision makers. You have a choice to make. Tomorrow may be too late. Tomorrow we could lose it all. 75 years of devotion to our professional future could be lost to indifference, apathy or simple neglect. Your Call to Action: Take these 4 steps 1. Claim your right to be a respected oral health team professional and your right to be heard. 2. Share this important message with your colleagues and talk about the urgency of supporting our professional associations. 3. Encourage your employer to support your professional association memberships because it will bring added value to your practice. 4. Invest in your professional future now. Contact the AADA today and become a tri-level supporting member! [email protected] 780-987-2022 Thank you for choosing to support our profession, our future and to protect our collective voice!

Alberta Health Services is hiring! Apply directly through this link by August 31st: https://careers.albertahealthservices.ca//community-tester Description: Th...e Community Tester supports infectious disease testing and prevention from a population health lens. Working as a member of an interdisciplinary team, staff prepare, test clients, document, and finalize tested samples for the lab. Under the guidance of our Medical Officers of Health, the role adheres to AHS documentation guidelines and lab testing policy, procedures, and standards. As the appropriate use of full Personal Protective Equipment (masks, gowns, gloves, eye protection) is also required to perform testing, the staff must adhere to all AHS Infection, Prevention and Control requirements, guidelines, and practices and are required to take continued precautions wherever required, including at break and meal times. Staff may be required to work at various locations as designated, based on need, demand, and changing service locations. Minimum Salary: $35.81 Maximum Salary: $47.67 See more

Everyone can benefit from guidance on how to support the mental health of individuals as they plan safe transitions into their workplace and to help employers as they develop policies and procedures for supporting staff returning to the work environment during the Covid 19 pandemic. The Canadian Mental Health Association, Ontario division, in partnership with Mental Health Works and BounceBack Ontario have developed Return to the Workplace: A phychological Toolkit for Headin...g Back to Work to serve employees and employers across a variety of sectors. For employees, anxiety about returning to the previous ways of working and engaging with others is natural and expected. This toolkit aims to support employees currently working from home and struggling with thoughts about returning to the workplace. It contains information about the common emotions people may be feeling as they think about returning to their workplace and guides readers through coping strategies. You can access this toolkit by clicking on this link: https://ontario.cmha.ca//CMHA_ReturnToWorkplace-Toolkit_EN

Our tri-level professional associations are now accepting membership applications and renewals for the 2021 membership year which begins on December 1, 2020. We encourage all Alberta RDAs to support the important work of these 3 organizations who have been working hard on your behalf during the Covid-19 pandemic, in advocacy for our profession at the provincial level and on national initiatives and projects of benefit to our profession and professional members. In honor of ...the Canadian Dental Assistants Association 75th anniversary, the AADA is holding a draw for two $75 gift cards to the URstore for swag of your choice! You must have your membership payment in no later than November 30th to qualify for this draw. To access the annual forms you may visit your Local association website or contact the AADA and we will forward the information for the Local of your choosing. You can email or call us at [email protected] 780-987-2022. We look forward to welcoming you to our family of oral healthcare professionals and to providing you with services, supports, benefits and more in 2021! See more

URGENT REQUEST FOR FEEDBACK ON PPE SHORTAGES FOR ORAL HEALTHCARE The Canadian Dental Assistants Association is a member of the Organization for Health Action (HEAL). This week HEAL met with the Canadian Minister of Healths office to discuss access to the Essential Services Contingency Reserve of PPE. We need to respond on shortages of PPE for oral healthcare in Alberta for our input to be included in the HEAL document that will be presented to the Minister of Health offic...e next week. Please help us by providing AADA with your response to these 2 questions: Are you still experiencing PPE shortages, and if so, in what setting? (LTC, private clinic, other) What type of PPE is in short supply or difficult to get? (gowns, gloves, sanitizer, N95, surgical Cl3 mask, face shields, other) The more specific you can be, the better! Send your responses by email to [email protected] or respond in the comments for this post. We need to hear from our Alberta RDAs no later than Sunday August 23 at noon. All responses received by that time will be forwarded to the CDN DAA for inclusion in the HEAL report. Thank you for your valuable feedback. Togetherwe are stronger!

Important message to oral health providers from our national association: To address the gap in available PPE, the Government of Canadas Essential Services Contingency Reserve (ESCR) has been established. The ESCR premits eligible essential service business or organizations to apply to receive personal protective equipment (PPE), non-medical masks and disinfection products to address urgent, short-term (45 days) needs. The Contingency Reserve complements existing PPE suppor...t being provided to frontline health care workers by the Public Health Agency of Canada. It helps other essential service organizations bridge critical, temporary gaps in their supplies to avoid any significant disruptions in services to Canadians. Supplies are provided on a cost-recovery basis to businesses or organizations that cannot access supplies through other means and when significant service disruptions are imminent. Learn about the contingency reserve, find eligibility requirements and access the application form at https://www.canada.ca//public-services-/services/escr.html See more

Our national association has provided the following information to share with our professional members. Health Canada has made several resources available that will be of interest to oral health professionals. To access these resources click on the links: Food and Nutrition Highlights Report 2020... https://www.canada.ca//publications/f/highlights-2019.html Drug and Medical Device Highlights update 2020 https://www.canada.ca//drugs-healt/highlights-reports.html Canada Food Guide 2019 https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/ Health Canada will now be sharing accomplishments related to food and nutrition annually. This first edition outlines how they promoted healthy eating in 2019, as well as the initiatives they undertook to ensure food safety. Canadas food safety system also continues to be one of the best in the world. This past year, Health Canada made the food supply even safer by developing regulatory maximum levels for a number of chemical contaminants in food and by responding to emerging risks, like alcohol-related harms associated with highly sweetened alcoholic beverages. Health Canada also approved multiple new food additives, novel foods and infant formulas.

YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS ARE NEEDED! If you are concerned about the future of our profession, If you want to see changes in the dental work environment, If you want to contribute to changes in our profession, If you want to see more respect for our profession,... If you have made our profession your career choice, If you want an opportunity to be a leader for our profession, If you have any other reason for becoming a decision maker for our profession... We invite you to make a difference by joining the Association of Alberta Dental Assistants Board of Directors! Elections for the 2020-21 term will be held on October 3rd at the AADA AGM. Information about Board positions and a Letter of Intent form can be found at https://advocacyaada.wordpress.com/directors/ If you are ready to join our leadership team, we need to hear from you now. Call 780-987-2022 or email [email protected] and say "YES! I am ready to contribute!" See more

The Canadian Dental Assistants Association shared this slice of reality with us today: The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives has calculated the rental wagethe hourly wage needed to rent an average two-bedroom apartment (the most common type) without spending more than 30% of ones earnings, for cities across Canada. An interactive map with the 2020 data can be found at https://www.policyalternatives.ca/rentalwages. At the same time, Payscale posted data this month exa...mining the average hourly wage for a dental assistant in Canada, noting that the median (average) hourly wage for dental assistants is $20.93/hour. (Note: Scope of practice varies widely across the country with provinces like Quebec and Ontario also factored in where dental assisting is not a regulated profession.) Based on these two data sets, the average Canadian dental assistant would not be able to afford to rent a 2 bedroom apartment in BC, AB, SK, MB, ON or NS. In Alberta specifically, $25 /hour would be the minimum wage that would be required.

BREAKING NEWS: In response to the Association of Alberta Dental Assistants letter to the Minister of Health on May 31, 2020, the Colleges have now worked together so that dental assistants, dentists and dental hygienists all have consistent information and expectations and follow the same set of guidelines in the workplace. Dental Practice Guidelines during the COVID-19 Pandemic replaces these documents:... CADA COVID-19 Return to Non-essential Practice ADA&Cs Expectations and Pathway for Patient Care during the COVID-19 Pandemic CRDHAs COVID-19 Return to Work Guidelines for Dental Hygienists You will find this document and other important news on our website later today at https://advocacyaada.wordpress.com/covid-19-news/ or you can go directly to https://abrda.ca/front/common-covid-19-practice-guidelines/ We heard from our members about concerns and issues related to working in the same workplace environment with colleagues under differing guidelines during Covid 19. AADA acted immediately to address these with the Minister of Health and we are pleased that the Minister of Health and Chief Medical Officer of Alberta agreed with our recommendation, directing the 3 Colleges for Dentists, Dental Assistants and Dental Hygienists to work together to prepare a single set of guidelines that all could follow. This action will provide a safer and more efficient workplace and more effective provision of oral healthcare in our province. Association of Alberta Dental Assistants: Weve got U covered!

FREE Webinar July 29, 2020 5 pm AB time "Management of Periodontitis and Peri-Implantitis by Lasers" Presenter: Jon B. Suzuki, DDS, PhD, MBA Commercial Supporter: Millennium Dental Technologies, Inc.... Description:Periodontal therapies have benefited from emerging new technologies and have provided patients with more effective, less invasive, and improved prognosis for management of Periodontitis. Peri-implantitis and implant failures have also realized improved rescue of failing implants and therapy of peri-implantitis. This presentation will present Nd:YAG laser approaches which have revolutionized concepts of periodontal regeneration. These opportunities provide new options to treat periodontitis and peri-implantitis. Case reports will be incorporated to illustrate successful management of these clinical conditions. Learning Objectives: Describe the increasing scope of periodontitis and peri-implantitis Determine how Nd:YAG influences regeneration favorably with tenets of biofilm control, guided tissue regeneration, and regional acceleratory phenomenon Describe LANAP and LAPIP wound healing processes including microbial reduction, inflammation control, regional acceleratory phenomenon, and biostimulation To register go to: https://cdeworld.com//21800-management-of-periodontitis-an

Risk for dental healthcare professionals during the COVID-19 global pandemic: an evidence-based assessment Objectives: Heightened anxiety among dental healthcare professionals (DHPs) during the COVID-19 pandemic stems from uncertainties about the effectiveness of personal protective equipment (PPE) against dental aerosols and risk levels of asymptomatic patients. Our objective was to assess the risks for DHPs providing dental care during the pandemic based on available scient...ific evidence. Results: With the assumption that DHPs work fulltime and wear a N95 mask, the annualized probability for a DHP to acquire COVID-19 infection in a dental office, become symptomatic, and die from the infection is estimated at 1:13,000 (0.008%). Conclusions: Risk of COVID-19 transmission in dental office is very low based on available evidence on effectiveness of PPE and prevalence of asymptomatic patients. Face shields and pre-procedure oral rinses may further reduce the risks. Clinical significance: DHPs should follow guidelines on pre-appointment protocols and on PPE use during dental treatments to keep the risk low. To read the full article, go to: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32693111/

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July 16, 2020 Dental Industry Association of Canada SPECIAL BULLETIN BEWARE OF FRAUDULENT ACTIVITIES IN INDUSTRY BUYERS BEWARE has now become SELLERS BEWARE as a string of fraudulent buying activities has once again hit our industry and impacts our relationships with the dental office community.... The following scenarios have happened in BC and Ontario and maybe happening in other provinces: Scenario A A person posing as a Dentist/Dental Assistant etc. from a legitimate dental office places an order with a distributor who then processes the order and has it shipped to the legitimate dental office address. The fraudsters then pose as representatives from the distributor, contacts the legitimate dental office and advises these products were shipped in error and they will be sending a courier company to pick them up to which they are then re-routed to a hotel, warehouse etc. Scenario B The fraudster poses as an employee of the distributor and asks the courier company to re-direct legitimate orders from the distributor to a new address. Here are some great tips to help your business and our dental office partners to manage this fraudulent activity: 1. Distributors, your customer service teams need to be extra vigilant in using a strict customer verification process before entering an order. 2. Behaviours to watch out for: o Orders with a high quantity of items, unusual quantity ordered. o Orders outside of their typical history - items they havent previously ordered or different categories of items o Orders with high overall dollar amounts ($1,000 and above) 3. The following items seem to be some favourites being ordered by fraudsters: Filtek Z250; Morita Root ZX II Apex Locator; Protemp Plus Refill; Panavia V5 Paste Syringe A2; RelyX Unicem Transluc Aplicap; System B Cordless Fill Kit; System B Cordless Pack; RelyX Unicem 2 Automix Refill. 4. Put security measures in place with your courier company with a verification process. If shipments are re-directed they must call to confirm. These perpetrators seem to be very organized, convincing and looking for victims so be extremely vigilant in your order and delivery processes. Discuss this issue with your dental customers and engage their help in the control of fraud for the benefit of the whole dental community.

For the dental community: support through CDSPIs Members Assistance Program (MAP) is just a click or call away. MAP is a free counselling, referral and information service for dentists, dental office staff members and their families. Learn more: https://bit.ly/2xba3MP

Some employers are complaining that they cannot find or keep staff. Do those employers critically evaluate the reason they are having this problem? There are ...several areas to look at during this evaluation that could be contributing factors. (see photo) It is also important to realize that staff don't quit jobs, they quit employers. Until an employer addresses the real reasons for high turnover in their practice the pattern is likely to continue. Respect for the contributions of all oral healthcare team members costs nothing but is one of the most highly valued factors in the workplace. Employers who show that respect in regular and specific ways to individual team members will reap the benefits to their practice, their team and their patients! See more

Respiratory PPE, dry mouth and Covid-19: Why you need to know your own CAMBRA score! July 9, 2020 Written by Anne Nugent Guignon, MPH, RDH, CSP Certainly, dental professionals are quite adept at recognizing oral disease risks, but in todays convoluted COVID 19-world, how many dental professionals are focused on what is happening their own mouth? As health-care professionals are wearing respiratory PPE to care of others, their own risk of caries, erosion, and fungal infecti...ons has risen exponentially. Dry mouth is increasing among health-care providers While no one will argue the importance of increased personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements, there are simply unexpected consequences that should not be ignored. Based on several recent studies, 53% of health-care professionals report dry mouth and 66% are reporting a sense of dehydration.1 What does all of this mean to those of us in the trenches? Were providing oral care to others, while our risk for caries, erosion, and fungal infections has risen exponentially since March 2020.2-5 The substantial risk of dry mouth syndrome is now a documented condition resulting from multiple site effects of using respiratory PPE for protracted periods of time.1 To read the full article go to https://www.dentistryiq.com//respiratory-ppe-dry-mouth-and

4 Key Dimensions to Self-Care Author: Lynda Monk (MSW, RSW) Trainer, Crisis & Trauma Resource Institute What is self-care and why does it matter? Self-care includes all the things you do to take care of your well-being in four key dimensions your emotional, physical, psychological, and spiritual health.... If you are a counsellor, social worker, therapist, health care professional, leader, educator, change agent, caregiver, parent, purpose-driven entrepreneur a person who gives a lot of yourself in service to the well-being, learning, and growth of others in some way self-care and care of others becomes an important balancing act. To read the full article go to https://ca.ctrinstitute.com/blog/4-key-dimensions-self-care/ See more

UPDATE from Health Canada This 2020 Canadian Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System (CARSS) Report provides a detailed assessment of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in Canada. This report also provides recent information on the amount of antimicrobials used in humans and animals, as antimicrobial use (AMU) is one of the key drivers of AMR. The methodology used for this report prioritizes AMR and AMU data acquired by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) and its part...ners. These data are often characterized by a high degree of national representation, but are not fully comprehensive. While this publication does not include projections as a result of mathematical modeling or the calculation of cost estimates, the timely availability of these data complement the existing body of evidence. Globally, infections caused by antimicrobial resistant organisms are becoming more frequent, leading to increased illness, death and rising healthcare costsFootnote1 . Indicators show that the situation is worsening in Canada. Note: dentist prescribing data are on page 75 https://www.canada.ca//canadian-antimicrobial-resistance-s See more

Have you taken 3 minutes to take this short but important survey? In order to assist the Canadian Dental Assistants Association in their projects and joint CDA/CDAA working committees looking at employment issues in Canada, the CDAA has developed a short survey (3 questions) regarding Covid-19 and return to practice. We strongly encourage our members to respond to this survey before July 30, 2020. Just a note: On question #3 you can only select one option, however, there i...s an option of "Other (please specify)" which allows you to specify multiple choices and even additional considerations. Please use that choice if you feel that more than one option applies to you. Thanks! The survey is completely anonymous. Go to: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/6CLWJ7C Thank you for your valuable participation in the work of our national association! See more

Podcast Episode 14: Antivirals, Vaccines and Hope Dr. D. Lorne Tyrrell, MD This 24 minute podcast is an interesting discussion of the history and work being done on finding a vaccine for SARS CoV 2, the virus that causes Covid 19. Enjoy!... https://soundcloud.com//episode-14-antivirals-vaccines-and

Update July 6-2020 Health Canada has identified counterfeit respirators in Canada and is advising consumers to stop using them as they may not protect Canadians against the virus that causes COVID-19. Counterfeit respirators are imitations of legitimate products. There are no assurances that they provide protection or prevent harm. Health Canada is taking action to stop the import and sale of counterfeit respirators in Canada. The Department directs companies that may be impo...rting or distributing these respirators to remove them from the market since they are not permitted to be sold in Canada. Health Canada will also cancel authorizations when there are reasonable grounds to believe that a product is counterfeit. Health Canada will continue to take action and update the list of counterfeit respirators as needed. What you should do: Check whether your N95 respirator has been tested and certified by the U.S. National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which provides tips on how to identify legitimate and counterfeit products on its website, or whether it is on the list of counterfeit respirators found below. If your respirator is counterfeit, stop using it as it may not protect you against the virus that causes COVID-19. Report any health product adverse events or complaints to Health Canada. Provincial and territorial health authorities and healthcare institutions should review their inventories of respirators to confirm that they meet the Government of Canada technical specifications for healthcare settings for the COVID-19 response. To read the full bulletin go to https://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-aler//73493a-eng.php

Since Health Canada first issued a recall notice on June 6, it has added multiple rounds of new hand sanitizer listings on June 10, June 11, June 22 and July 3. The full list of recalled hand sanitizers products and their producers is as follows: Aktif Antiseptique instantané pour les mains (Laboratoire Hygienex Inc.) Biogel (Groupe Savon Olympics Inc.)... Dash Vapes Hand Sanitizer (DashVapes Inc.) Eltraderm Hand Sanitizer - 70 per cent Ethyl Alcohol (Eltraderm Limited) eSafe (Groupe Enov, Inc.) Gel 700 Hand Sanitizer (Nature's Own Cosmetic Company Inc.) Gel Antiseptique Pour Les Mains (Mégalab Inc.) Germzero (Flash Beauté Inc.) Hand Sanitizer (Contract Packaging Distributions Inc.) Hand Sanitizer Alco-San (Crown Chemical Products, Inc.) Hand Sanitizer/Désinfectant pour les mains (Walker Emulsions Ltd.) Healthcare Plus Sanitizing Hand Gel (The Color Group, Division of Canadian Custom Packaging) Manogel (Constant America) Protectenol Hand Sanitizer Liquid (Applied Lubrication Technology) Sanilabs Hand Sanitizer 70 per cent Ethanol (Sanilabs Inc.) Sanitagel (Jefo Nutrition, Inc.) Smart Care (R&D Technical Solutions Ltd.) Tekare Instant Hand Cleanser Gel (TEKPolymer Inc.) Tidol Hand Sanitizer 70 per cent (Tidol Corporation) Vima-San (Crown Chemical Products, Inc.) Walker Emulsions Hand Sanitizer (Walker Emulsions Ltd.) X-Pure Vert-2-Go Gel (Wood Wyant Inc.) "Industrial-grade ethanol contains impurities that are not found in the type of ethanol approved for use in manufacturing hand sanitizers ... In addition, chemicals that may not be approved for use in hand sanitizers are added to industrial-grade ethanol," said the notice from Health Canada. That notice warned that industrial-strength ethanol has not been reviewed for safety or efficacy since it isn't an approved ingredient in Canada, and that using products containing it can lead to dry skin, irritation and cracking. Stop using the recalled items, the notice advises. It adds that people can return the items to their local pharmacy. https://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-aler//73269a-eng.php

Professional Ethics

When the first coronavirus cases in Chicago appeared in January, they bore the same genetic signatures as a germ that emerged in China weeks before. But as Egon Ozer, an infectious-disease specialist at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, examined the genetic structure of virus samples from local patients, he noticed something different. A change in the virus was appearing again and again. This mutation, associated with outbreaks in Europe and New York, e...ventually took over the city. By May, it was found in 95 percent of all the genomes Ozer sequenced. The switch occurred in the part of the genome that codes for the all-important spike protein the protruding structure that gives the coronavirus its crownlike profile and allows it to enter human cells the way a burglar picks a lock. Of the approximately 50,000 genomes of the new virus that researchers worldwide have uploaded to a shared database, about 70 percent carry the mutation, officially designated D614G but known more familiarly to scientists as G. To read the full article and the research manuscript go to: https://www.msn.com//this-coronavirus-mutatio/ar-BB166k89 https://www.biorxiv.org/co/10.1101/2020.06.12.148726v1.full

Nurses launch investigation into Canadas failure to protect health care workers from COVID-19. The SARS Commission provided clear recommendations on worker safety and infection containment, lessons that have been overlooked in this pandemic, said Mr. Possamai. It is our hope that this investigation, prompted by the CFNU, will yield unequivocal, evidence-based recommendations that are urgently needed to prepare Canada and frontline workers for the next wave of COVID-19. It will be interesting to see whether the recommendations coming from this investigation will apply to oral healthcare professionals. To read the entire article go to: https://nursesunions.ca/nurses-launch-investigation-into-c/

Kudos - to those practices that are doing everything they possibly can to reduce potential transmission of SARS CoV2. New to the dental industry is the use of foggers. Many dental offices are now fogging treatment rooms as well as other areas in addition to required disinfection procedures to increase safety for staff and patients. The fogging solution is hypochlorous acid HOCl, which is effective at killing viruses without leaving behind any hazardous residue. Here is a quick video that we found that is showing this procedure. https://twitter.com/i/status/1276490095890034688

The CRDHA has created an excellent resource that is helpful to all dental staff members with regard to doing a workplace hazard assessment and action plan to comply with OHS. To read this full document go to the AADA website Covid - 19 page. https://advocacyaada.wordpress.com/covid-19-news/