Update 22 June 2020

Open…. but we’re not back to normal yet!

We're open for some urgent dental care but are only able to carry out some very limited, urgent treatments.

If you have a dental emergency during working hours, please call us on 0141 952 9502. We will continue to offer advice or refer where appropriate to the Urgent Dental Care hubs as before. In addition, we will be able to arrange to carry out temporary dressings and most extractions in the practice.  Outside practice hours, if you have a genuine dental emergency such as severe symptoms of infection (pain, swelling), uncontrolled bleeding or trauma, please call 111.

We have been working hard behind the scenes to ensure the safety of our patients and our team, and this means a few changes. Please do not pop into the practice as current rules mean we are unable to deal with enquiries face to face – please phone us if you need to speak with one of the team.

Unfortunately, we are not yet allowed to offer any routine care such as check-ups or cleaning, and we are not able to carry out any procedures that require the use of a drill. We have details of those who have contacted us since we were forced to close due to lockdown and will be in touch as soon as we are able to provide appropriate treatment.

We’re excited to be able to get back to work, even though current restrictions mean that we will be working in small teams, and only able to see only a few urgent cases. Please bear with us while we adjust to working with new routines and protocols.

Stay safe

Andrew and the Riverbank Dental Team

Covid - 19 update March 2022

What's happening - why aren't you back to "normal" yet?

COVID-19 is, unfortunately still widespread in Scotland.

While many sectors have had their Covid-19 restrictions reduced or even completely removed, healthcare is a very different story.  There have been very few changed to the original covid measures we are required to undertake in order to minimise risk for our patients and for our team.

The Covid-19 restrictions have placed an increased burden on all dental practices and as such, although Riverbank Dental is once again able to offer a wide range of dental services for you and your family, these restrictions have reduced the overall number of available appointments.

This means we have had to prioritise emergency and urgent care, and the team are working hard to manage the backlog.  Routine check-ups are now available; however, we are not yet at the stage where we are sending out regular routine recall reminders.

Please work with us to allow us to provide you with the dental care you need in the safest way possible. This ensures that we can make the practice as safe as possible so that those who are extra-vulnerable to covid-19 can still be as safe as possible accessing dental care.


Covid-19 Screening and Measures

You will be asked a series of questions about your covid-19 status and potential exposures. Please wear a mask when you arrive, unless you are unable to do so. If you forget to bring your mask, we can provide you with one. You will be asked to sanitise your hands and we will take your temperature contactlessly. If you are able to take a lateral flow test before attending, this would be much appreciated, however it is not a requirement for attendance.

 What if I am ill - even if it's "just" a cold?

Please don’t attend the practice if you have a positive covid-19 diagnosis or if you are at all unwell with any respiratory illness (cough, cold). If you are unwell, please call the practice and we will advise – in most cases you will be asked to reschedule. If you are experiencing a dental emergency (bleeding, swelling, severe pain, dental trauma), we will still be able to see you, but will need to make special arrangements to reduce the risks to staff and patients.

 Why do I still need to wear a mask?

As a healthcare service, all patients, staff, and visitors are required to wear masks unless medically exempt. We ask that if you are at all able to wear a mask in the reception and waiting areas, and while moving about the practice, then to please do so, as this helps to protect other patients and our team, and we thank you in advance for your cooperation in this.

What's with all the PPE? I'm here for a filling, not major surgery!

You may see that our clinical teams are required to wear a lot more PPE than pre-covid. This provides extra protection for the staff and for patients – we promise it’s the same smiley team underneath! Please bear with us as it takes extra time to put this on and to change it between patients.

Update 25th September 2020

AGPs - Drills and more

We’ve had a delivery of enhanced PPE from the health board (kindly modelled above by Andrew W and Eva).

This means we can now provide emergency care that creates an aerosol at the practice (an AGP) - we would previously have had to refer these cases to the health board emergency hub. This may include any emergency care including the use of a drill, starting a root canal treatment or carrying out a surgical extraction with the use of a drill.

AGPs can only be carried out with the use of enhanced PPE including FFP3 respirators, full gowns, apron, and visor which are normally used in hospitals to treat COVID positive patients.

The health board is providing us with a limited quantity of this enhanced PPE (2 per day) as well as standard PPE (10 per day).  Before lockdown we would usually have seen over 100 patients a day. Now we are only generally able to see a maximum of 10 non-AGPs and 2 AGPs a day, for urgent care only.

Unfortunately this is still not a return to normal service, we still have to abide by Scottish Government restrictions, including those on social distancing, and this severely limits the number of patients we can see per day and the types of treatment we can provide.

The restrictions placed on us by Scottish Government mean we must prioritise urgent care and are not able to provide routine treatments at this time.

We would however like to reassure you all that emergency NHS care is available to all our patients.
 
After initial emergency care has been provided, you will be added to our routine care waiting list and you will be contacted to continue your treatment when we are able to do so.

Patients on our waiting list, including those who contacted us during lockdown, are being triaged according to need, with the most severe cases being offered appointments first.

Please be patient with us as we try to work through this substantial backlog under significantly reduced capacity. Our waiting list also includes those patients who were under treatment prior to lockdown.

Routine check up appointments and scale & polishes/cleaning are not currently available at the practice, as these require the use of the air/water spray, and are classed as AGPs.  We can only apologise for this. We share the very real frustration you may be feeling over these circumstances, and are hoping for a return to normal service as soon as possible, although this will be dictated by government policy and guidance.
 
If you have a dental emergency, are concerned about any issues with your mouth, or require advice, please contact us during practice hours on 01419529502. For dental emergencies out of practice hours, please call 111 for advice.

Finally we would like to thank you all for your support and understanding.


Andrew and the Riverbank Dental Team

 0141 952 9502

riverbank DENTAL

2385 Dumbarton Road, Glasgow G14 0NT

Update October 2022

If you have an appointment:

If you have an appointment please don't attend the practice if you are feeling unwell. Please call us to cancel and give us as much notice as possible (ideally a minimum of 24 hours).

Please don't wait to see if you feel better on the day.  We know you may have waited a while for your appointment but the safety of our team and patients is our prioity.

If you feel unwell and have a dental emergency that cannot wait until you are recovered, please call us for advice. We may be able to offer telephone advice or arrange an emergency appointment in a way that minimises the risks for all.

Covid-19 Screening and Measures

You will be asked a series of questions about your covid-19 status and potential exposures when booking your appointment. Please contact us for advice if the answers to these questions change prior to your appointment. Please wear a mask when you arrive, unless you are unable to do so. If you forget to bring your mask, we can provide you with one. Hand sanitiser is freely available for use.

 What if I am ill - even if it's "just" a cold?

Please don’t attend the practice if you have a positive covid-19 diagnosis or if you are at all unwell with any respiratory or viral illness (cough, cold, temperature, stomach upset). If you are unwell, please call the practice and we will advise – in most cases you will be asked to reschedule. If you are experiencing a dental emergency (bleeding, swelling, severe pain, dental trauma), we will still be able to see you, but will need to make special arrangements to reduce the risks to staff and patients.

 Why do I still need to wear a mask?

As a healthcare service, all patients, staff, and visitors are required to wear masks unless medically exempt. We ask that if you are at all able to wear a mask in the reception and waiting areas, and while moving about the practice, then to please do so, as this helps to protect other patients and our team, and we thank you in advance for your cooperation in this.

Thanks again for all your support as we work towards returning to normal service