Here's how to get emergency dental care in Nova Scotia during COVID-19

Nova Scotians needing emergency dental work are being steered toward six emergency dental clinics in Halifax and Sydney, but the province's dentistry board plans to open more locations soon.

Dr. Martin Gillis, the registrar of the Provincial Dental Board of Nova Scotia, said all other dental offices in the province are closed to patients. They are, however, taking phone calls from people with dental emergencies.

He told CBC News that dental emergencies include trauma affecting your teeth, a significant infection with facial swelling or abscesses, prolonged bleeding, or pain that can't be managed by over-the-counter medications.

Dentists listed online

Gillis said people suffering from such an emergency should first call their dentist, or a dentist in their community. The board lists dentists online: pdbns.ca/find-a-dentist

"Right now, all dentists in Nova Scotia must be accessible to their patients or people in their communities without a dentist to triage dental emergencies," he said Friday via email. "As a first step, the dentist would triage the dental emergency over the telephone."

The local dentist can contact the patient's pharmacy to prescribe antibiotics or pain medication. If the local dentist determines the patient needs to see a dentist, the patient will be referred to one of the emergency clinics in Halifax, which includes ones at Dalhousie University, the QEII Health Science Centre, and the IWK.

"We expect to announce additional emergency dental clinics in the coming days," Gillis said.

The emergency clinics must have personal protection equipment and safety protocols in place to treat people during the COVID-19 pandemic, he said. He said some procedures, such as drilling, can spray saliva, and so require more stringent protocols.

More clinics on the way

Gillis said they're reviewing applications from other dentists to get more clinics approved.

Dr. Sathyasai Murty and Dr. Mary-Ann MacDonald at Scotia Dental in Halifax said they've had about 40 calls. Most are people with swelling, pain or trauma.

They said the stress of the current situation has led many people to grind their teeth while they sleep. Others worry they've got a tooth infection.

"They call to seek advice, guidance and reassurance from us. A soothing voice in some cases is all they need," the doctors said via email. 

Their office manager takes the phone calls and runs through a checklist to start the triage. One of the four dentists at their practice then calls the patient to address their concerns.

In some cases, they have prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs or antibiotics, and only a "handful" of patients have been referred onto an emergency clinic.

"Phone consultations have been an effective temporary method of dealing with dental emergencies in the wake of this pandemic," they said.

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