Coronavirus (Covid 19) in Dentistry: how to protect yourself and how the market should recover

Although the pandemic is stabilizing in countries like China and South Korea, it may be just beginning to take shape in Brazil. For this reason, our industry needs to be aware of key scientific information and instructions from reliable sources in order not to be affected drastically.

Regarding instructions outside the work environment, just follow the abundant recommendations already published in the various media, such as:
- Avoid touching parts of the face;
- Wash your hands constantly;
- Avoid proximity to people and agglomerations;
- When coughing or sneezing, cover your mouth;
- In case of symptoms (cough, fever, difficulty breathing) seek a health unit;
- Wear masks always.

In the dental clinic, some prevention recommendations are more specific, including:
- The first preventive measure is to carry out a questionnaire with the patient, including questions about health status, recent trips, breathing problems, contact with sick people;
- If the patient has any response that raises suspicion, it is ideal to measure the patient's temperature and if he is feverish, reschedule the appointment for after 14 days;
- Use protective equipment such as gloves, caps, masks and disposable coats;
- Clean and disinfect all surfaces before and after care.

How the market is reacting in other countries and how the recovery should be

A survey was carried out with dental professionals worldwide, countries that are already recovering from the coronavirus epidemic, others that are probably in the middle of the curve and some with the curve still on the rise. We use these contacts to conduct a qualitative research, with the opinions of each professional on how the dental market should behave after the stabilization of cases and the recovery of the economy.

Question: Did your country perform a lockdown for dental clinics?

To open the question, we asked a basic question for our market. If the government of the country of the professional to be interviewed demanded a lockdown of clinics, surely the whole market stopped. As noted in the responses (Germany, United States, South Korea, Israel, China and Japan), most countries have closed clinics entirely or partially.

Regardless of whether the country surveyed closed clinics or not, what happened in the markets, according to the responses, was similar. Patients in general canceled consultations and procedures, and in addition to the cancellations there were no new appointments, so only emergency services were performed, causing a considerable drop in demand for most services performed in clinics and for the products that are used.

We still do not have data or research to prove the reasons for patients canceling procedures, but we can have a general idea: fear of contamination, uncertainty about the future, general pause in expenses, among others. From this observation, we can understand the main problem that must be faced by the dental market (and other markets) after COVID-19: Demand.

Prospects for the future

The contamination curve of the pandemic is different among the countries of the interviewees, which allows us to have a “future” view of what happens after the outbreak improves. Some of the respondents from countries that have already managed to improve contagion believe that starting this month (April) the market will begin to recover. So, we can understand that it takes a month after infections to fall for the resumption of demand, albeit slow.

The general opinion is that contamination and contagion need to be reduced quickly so that patients can again be safe to return to clinics, which will happen gradually over time.

Oral health and our dental market have gone through several crises, remaining as a constant need of the population. Therefore, we need to remain confident and ensure the resumption of the market with innovative ideas, targeted marketing and reminding the population of how important a treatment or procedure can be for the dental and mental health of each one, of how aesthetics influences several factors of our lives and other benefits of the treatments offered by a dental office.

Suggestions for resumption

The dental sector should strive to guarantee the resumption of services. Even after the outbreak is over or stable, patients may be afraid to resume procedures for fear of contamination or general questions about spending. As suggestions for dentists and other companies in the sector, we can list:
- Disclosure of protective measures used in the clinic. The patient must feel safe to perform any type of procedure;
- Use social networks as a way to show all the benefits of the treatments offered;
- Emphasize the importance of oral health for society in general;
- Other forms of dissemination suitable for each person's profile.

In general, all markets will be affected, but we must continue to prepare the measures that we can take to facilitate and accelerate the recovery. We can get out of this stronger, at that time we need solidarity and companionship. With innovation and new solutions, our market will be able to recover quickly.

Source: Odontomega. Available at: https://info.odontomega.com.br/coronavirus-covid-19-na-odontologia-como-se-proteger-e-como-o-mercado-deve-se-recuperar/. Access on: 04/29/2020.