A critical component of a dental office’s HIPAA compliance program is obtaining business associate agreements from their business associates. A business associate is a person or an entity that provides services for the covered entity (dental office) involving protected health information (PHI) and electronic protected health information (ePHI). Examples of business associates include electronic claims…

How to Dispose of Dental Anesthetic Carpules By Olivia Wann Modern Practice Solutions, LLC is receiving numerous calls regarding disposal of pharmaceutical waste, particularly dental anesthetic carpules. The American Dental Association recently published an article, “Stericycle Contracts: Read the Fine Print – Dentists Question Business Practices,” in the ADA News June 20, 2016 edition. Dentists…

It seems like a handheld X-ray unit is the way to go . . . is it? Maybe yes . . . probably no By Kevin Christian, LLC Airbex Nomad Handheld X-ray Units have many advantages, and many disadvantages. Let me start with the disadvantages. Cons: 1)   You must get the state’s approval for use prior to purchase. …

As consultants in the dental OSHA and infection control compliance world, we are keenly interested in the promotion of safe dental care and a safe working environment. There has been documented transmissions of infectious agents including patient-to-patient in dental settings between the years 2003 and 2015.  According to CDC, there have been reported breakdowns in…

Navigating the myriad of regulations that govern a dental office can be daunting.  And the last thing anything wants is to be out of compliance without even knowing it.  My name is Kevin Christian, and I am the TDA endorsed private X-ray inspector in the State of Tennessee.  I want to take a second to…

Our office receives numerous questions from dental offices inquiring about the scope of duties for dental assistants in Tennessee.  Dental Assistants must practice within the scope of duties outlined by Tennessee Rules governing the practice of dental assistants.  The dental assistant is required to stay up to date on these rules and maintain a current…

It was common years ago for health care facilities to flush unused pharmaceuticals down the toilet or dump it down the drain.  The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conducted studies and identified numerous pharmaceutical compounds in our nation’s rivers, lakes, streams and drinking waters. Despite the complexity of waste management, dental offices must evaluate the types…

We receive a great deal of calls to our office inquiring what to do with old paper records in storage.  Typically the dental office has long since transitioned to a computer and now fully digital. Old records are stored in dentist’s houses, basements, storage buildings or within the dental office. This is particularly a problem when…