Playing your cards wisely?


This whole pandemic experience seems a little reminiscent of the Texas Holdem tournaments that I use to play online (the free variety). When playing you had a fixed amount of capital and you had to play your cards wisely if you wanted a place at the final table. Sure playing with a fair amount of risk might reap bigger rewards but over the long haul, playing risky tended to get you busted, broke and out of the tournament.  It took discipline to fold early and often and only back hands that would likely be sure winners. That being the case, playing conservatively didn't guarantee success but it tended to keep you in the tournament long enough to have a chance to get to the final table.

This pandemic has some similarities since it will likely go on for the next 6 months or more and the risks we take will cumulatively make it more likely for us to become infected. Taking needless risks seems unwise, regardless of whatever nonsense others are saying. Let's face it, for the next year all we have to do is stay as safe as possible. Yes we may choose to go back to work, but if so we should ensure that we are working in a space that is as safe as possible.

The virus is surely partly transmitted in the air and wearing masks, opening windows, having air purifiers and practicing social distancing is important. One never actually will know who is "safe" to be around and the more people we spend time with without wearing masks, the more likely we are to contract this virus. I personally have been taking the express bus from queens wearing an N95 mask. These buses are not crowded and the passengers are spread out on the bus. It may take longer than the subways but there are few maskless people on these buses.

In my office we are prescreening our patients and taking their temperatures when they walk in the door. Our windows are open and we have air purifiers in practically every room in the office. In addition we fog our treatment rooms with HOCl solution after each patient is seen. I can honestly tell my patients that our office is safer than most places.

In terms of taking care of one's teeth... In NYC, now is probably the best time to visit your dentist. We don't really know what our infection rate will be in the next several months, but for now our infection rate is around 1 %. If you haven't been to dentist in the last 4 months, maybe this is the best time to visit your dentist. If you are concerned about the steps your dentist is taking to keep their office safe, don't hesitate to make an enquiry prior to booking an appointment.

When traveling to the dentist, wearing a mask properly is important ,since wearing a good quality mask protects both the wearer and others as well. Wearing a face shield may look dorky, but undoubtedly adds an additional protective barrier. Seeing as this pandemic is far from over, now is not the time to relax and let our guard down. The virus will not spare us even if we have mostly been careful. It just takes one good exposure and the virus will infect most of us ( Sorry Donald, this is not fake news!). Wearing a mask doesn't correlate with cowardly behavior  either ... It just makes good sense.


These are tough times, but if we work together smartly we will get through this. We are fighting this battle together and we need to take care of each other, persevere, stay smart and not give up!

from Ask Dr. Spindel - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/2020/07/playing-your-cards-wisely.html - http://lspindelnycdds.blogspot.com/

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