Hobart dental practice launches petition to guarantee steady supply of face masks

A South Hobart dental practice is leading a call for urgent action as surgeries across the country consider closing due to a shortage of face masks amid the coronavirus crisis.

DENTAL surgeries across the country may be forced to close their doors in coming weeks due to a shortage of surgical masks amid the coronavirus crisis.

A petition started by a South Hobart dental surgery is calling for the state and federal governments to take urgent action.

PATIENT ZERO DID NOT FOLLOW SELF-QUARANTINE

The petition’s creator, Dental on Macquarie co-owner and business manager Naomi Arnold, said their practice had begun to feel the pinch about a month ago.

“I thought that it was time to put more pressure on the health ministers to find out what we can do,” she said.

“About a month ago we started to feel the effects of a shortage of masks, so our normal suppliers that we would call upon started to let us know they were going to limit the amount of masks we would receive.

“Then we tried to source some more suppliers, and then probably last week it really became a little more urgent, a little more obvious that there was a real shortage.”

Dentist Stephen Dilger with nurses Tash Briggs and Caitlin Wilde at Dental On Macquarie. Picture: RICHARD JUPE

She said unlike some health professionals, dentists could not practice without face masks. “There’s a whole lot of guidelines that govern the way that we can practice, and one of the main infection control guidelines is that we can’t practice without masks, alongside other personal protection equipment such as gloves,” she said.

Ms Arnold said she started the petition initially to gauge how impacted other dental practices in the community were, but it has now received attention across the country.

“Even just talking to dentists in Hobart before I started the petition, they’re very much in the same position,” she said.

“I’ve had more feedback from other practices around Australia who are either reducing their hours of work, reducing rosters for staff, and they may be a week or two away from closing.

“While we’re in a better position than some of them, it’s still very serious.”

She said the main goal of the petition was to raise awareness and start a conversation.

She also wanted the state and federal governments to give the dental community a guarantee that they would receive support.

“We want more education around the fact that the masks for the general public aren’t useful. In fact, they’re futile in protecting them from the coronavirus.”

A spokesperson for Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said the government was working with the health care sector and mask suppliers to support continued access to protective masks, and they would also continue to work with the Australian Dental Association on the matter.

The State Government reiterated that wearing face masks in public was not necessary.

“We appreciate the challenge of the global supply issue and its impacts,” a spokesman said.

“This underlines the importance of our advice that use of face masks by the general public is not recommended. This maximises availability for where they are clinically needed, such as in dental practices, as well as the medical sector and for those in contact with a suspected case.”