Preparing for a Medical Emergency in the Dental Office

Roland Guy of Critical Care Solutions (10/15/2008)

Nobody likes the thought of a medical emergency in the dental office. In fact, most people are downright terrified of the possibility. Medical emergencies in the dental office are rare, unfortunately however, emergencies do happen. The ADA estimates approximately 3,000 life threatening emergencies occur in the dental office every year. As health care providers, it is the responsibility of every RDA, RDH, DDS and DMD to be prepared in the event of a medical emergency. Everyone is required to be trained in CPR and maintain valid certification. But is this enough? The dental professional can be confronted with various emergencies that do not require the compressions and ventilations taught in CPR courses. Anaphylaxis, Chest Pain, and Altered Level of Consciousness are just a few of the emergencies that require prompt action in order to prevent a negative patient outcome.

So how can the dental office prepare itself to face a medical emergency? First, a written comprehensive medical emergency response plan should be developed for every office. This plan should be reviewed by the entire office annually or when any changes in staff occur. The medical emergency response plan should include specific duties for each person within the office. For instance, front office staff should be assigned the task of calling 911, copying the medical records of the patient, and meeting the fire department / paramedics in the parking lot. A licensed staff member should be assigned the task of documenting the medical emergency and maintaining the patient’s airway.

Secondly, every office should have an emergency medical kit with medications to treat the most life threatening emergencies. Every medication has an expiration date; therefore, the contents of the kit should be inspected monthly. Medications that every office should have on hand include: Nitroglycerin, Albuterol, baby Aspirin, glucose, Epinephrine and Benadryl. If your office treats children, pediatric doses of Epinephrine and Benadryl should also be included. Every dental office should also have a portable oxygen tank with a liter flow regulator attached.

Finally, the American Heart Association has recently made significant changes in CPR. The new changes took effect June 2006, and much more importance has been placed in the use of Automatic External Defibrillators (AED). Studies have shown that the use of AEDs with CPR has a much higher success rate than the use of CPR alone. In fact, the survival rate is greater than 70% when an AED is used within the first minute of a sudden cardiac arrest. The cost of AEDs have come down over the past few years and certain AEDs are even available over the counter without a physician’s prescription. Anyone can now purchase an AED for under $1,500.00. It is highly recommended that every dental office have an AED available, and that every member of the dental office be familiar with its use.

The American public expects and counts on their dentist and dental team to know how to take care of a medical emergency in the dental chair. They trust that the dentist has both their dental and medical health in mind. There can be no better way for a dental office to show their patients they care, then to be prepared and trained to save their patients lives.

Teresa Isbell, D.D.S.
Roland Guy, R.N., E.M.T.-P.