There are a number of reasons why a dental office needs to be equipped with proper first aid supplies. The two most common reasons for keeping a proper first aid kit is for patient emergency as well as staff emergency. Patient incidents are quite rare but in order to achieve appropriate patient and staff safety a proper first aid bag needs to be kept it every dental office.

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) requires that every dental office must have first aid supplies ready in case of any emergency. There are approved American National standards to put together employee first aid kits, but you can also put together your own.

Most first aid bags are made up of sterile adhesive bandages, soap, elastic bandages, gauze, tape, absorbent compress, adhesive bandages, medical tape, lubricant, thermometers, antibiotics, tweezers, scissors, latex gloves, tongue blades, cold packs, safety pins, antiseptic applicators, burn appointment and a splint. Many offices keep this employee first aid kit upfront with their office supplies.

A patient emergency kit usually has to contain a few extra items. Ultimately the patient emergency kit will vary based off of state requirements and it must include all of the aforementioned features from the employee emergency kit. The additional items in a first aid bag for patients include epinephrine, a histamine blocker, nitroglycerin, an asthma inhaler, sugar, and acid and pain reliever. The patient first aid kit must also have an oxygen delivery system and some dentists may even consider using an automated defibrillator unit.

You are placing your offices at risk by not having first aid bags available on-site. Be sure to look into your state requirements for what is needed inside of each first aid bag, and always be sure to keep them well-stocked in case of emergency. 

27/07/2017