The Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) would like to hear about your experience with COVID-19 and infection control practices through a brief survey.

The United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) plans to issue a permanent standard to protect health care workers from COVID-19, and, in response, L&I must develop rules at minimum as protective as OSHA. While OSHA has not yet released the final rule, results of this survey will help inform L&I throughout the rulemaking process. We encourage all members to complete the survey to ensure that dentists’ experiences are well represented in survey results.

The brief survey, anticipated to take 3-5 minutes of your time, will close on Nov. 1.

To assist members in completing the survey, WSDA has compiled relevant ADA, CDC, and other provider resources that may be referenced, and which have been made available throughout the pandemic:

• The ADA COVID-19 Hazard Assessment provides considerations when implementing a COVID-19 hazard assessment in a dental setting to mitigate risk to employees.
• The ADA COVID-19 Hazard Assessment Checklist is a supplementary resource to the ADA COVID-19 Hazard Assessment and provides a rough calculation of the hazard level present during one point in time.
• The CDC COVID-19 Facility Access Tool is a CDC resource which may be referenced when screening patients.
• The Washington State Dental Infection Control Rules, WAC 246-817-601 – WAC 246-817-660, which provide requirements for personnel safety, hand hygiene, and personal protective equipment, among other topics.
• The Journal of Dental Research Article, Sources of SARS-CoV-2 and Other Microorganisms in Dental Aerosols, which demonstrates that the water from the ultrasonic equipment is the primary source of aerosols rather than saliva, making the risk of spreading SARS-CoV-2 infection low.

Thank you for taking the time to fill out the survey.