Do N95 masks protect adequately against Covid Omnicron?

 I have been using N95s since June of 2020 and have treated numerous unmasked patients while in my office and at NYU College of Dentistry. Actually I "double mask" using a type II or type III surgical mask as an outer covering. The second mask keeps my N95 from getting overly soiled and allows me to get multiple uses out of each N-95 mask. The masks I wear are "genuine" and not counterfeits. They have a NIOSH label and actual numbers stamped on the masks. These masks are either given to me by the dental school or purchased in batches from Schein dental.

For most of this time I have taken the subway home from work and lately the trains are getting more crowded. Invariably there are multiple riders either not wearing a mask or wearing one improperly (often they are seated next to me). To the best of my knowledge, I have not contracted Covid. My conclusion is that N95's offer significant protection from Covid, including the Omnicron varient.

We have been giving out N95 masks in our dental goody bags that patients receive after their teeth are  cleaned. If they desire we give them on lesson on how to don and wear their new gift mask as well. While most of the patients are pleased a surprising number report that they don't like wearing the N95 masks. Usually we discuss the benefits of wearing them while on public transportation and shopping in stores. 

I explain that these may take some getting used to but will tend to keep them safe while they are out and about.  Hopefully my patients will benefit from wearing these masks and at least for a while avoid getting a breakthrough case of Covid. Even if Covid is here to stay, it seems prudent to avoid getting it for now, since some of the medicines that can be utilized in treating patients are in short supply and hospitals still have their hands full dealing with new Omnicron infections.

Re-credentialing with Delta is easy?

 

The answer is apparently not, at least in my experience. Last November I received a Re-credentialing packet and I gathered all the appropriate paper work, filled out the application as instructed, and scanned everything into a pdf format on my computer. I emailed everything to the address indicated on the application (creds@delta.org) and asked them to let me know if anything more was needed. When I received no response, I assumed that all was well.

This Monday my office manager brought me another letter informing me that Delta had contacted me multiple times asking me to re-certify and I had not responded and if they didn't hear from me shortly they would be forced to take me off their panel. I looked over the information and now they had a different email address to send the application and documents to (gacreds@delta.org). I forwarded my original email to the new address.

Buried somewhere in the new paperwork was a phone number (Credential Unit 866-689-7884)  that I could call, but when I called there was a recording informing me that they couldn't speak with me because they were busy "processing" their credentialing paperwork. This seemed pretty ironic since they had never acknowledged my original application. They did send me back an automatic email reply that they had received my inquiry about re-credentialing ( after I forwarded my application to the new email address). 

Just to make certain , I had my office manager send a completed set of paperwork via Fedex as well (signature required). While I understand Delta maybe short on staff right now due to Covid, I really do not feel sorry for them. Our office has been continuously open since June of 2020. It hasn't always been easy for us, but thankfully my staff and I are all vaccinated and doing fine. We are fully staffed and continue to take the steps needed to keep ourselves and our patients safe.

We have hepa air purifiers in all our rooms, and carefully disinfect rooms after each patient's visit. All instruments are scrubbed and sterilized before each use and all personal wear the appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment). Before we see patients our office manager carefully interviews each patient to screen out those at higher risk for having covid and when our patients arrive we check temperature and an oxygen levels using a pulse oximeter. 

 We answer our phones and book most patients appointments for the same week that they call and we also offer online booking of appointments on our website, 24 hrs per day. 

Possibly it is  too much to expect Delta to commit to the same standards they insist on for their own participatint dentists. The least they could do is answer their phone or at least have a answering system that allows us to leave a message. Unbelievable!