Volume 7 • 2020 • Issue 4

requests flooded in. “I started getting about 5−7 a day,” she says. “Organizing the Zoom consults, corresponding with patients, taking appropriate notes and records, and calling in prescriptions took up a significant amount of my time.” Dr. Luong decided to provide the service without charge, even as the Ontario Dental Association discussed creating a teledentistry code for fees. “Other businesses have been really helpful to me during this crisis, so I figured this was my way of helping others.” Early on, the RCDSO released a guideline for teledentistry 1 that Dr. Luong followed to make sure she was protecting the privacy of patients she helped online and that patients understood the limitations of remote care. “I’m asking for ID and recording it,” she says, “and then advising patients that teledentistry is new in Ontario." Dr. Luong and Cormier created a consent form and medical history form to use specifically for teledentistry. “The consent form highlights that we can’t perform a formal examination and take X-rays, and that we can only work with the details and symptoms that patients tell us. And that might not be sufficient in all cases,” she says. “We wanted to make all the risks and limitations crystal clear.” In April, when Dr. Luong spoke with CDA Essentials , she was only doing about 10% of the scope of her usual dentistry and said that she really missed seeing her patients in person. “I’m refining my interviewing skills, focusing on asking the right questions and learning to see my patients in a different context.” Dr. Luong says she has been focusing on the extra time she has with her young child and her husband. “I’m trying to do my best with the things I can control and focusing on those,” she says. “I’m exercising, cooking, and spending time with my family. I’m watching webinars and keeping my CE up-to-date. I’m doing what I can so that I’ll be ready when we reopen.” A Code for Teledentistry? 1. The Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario. Guidance for the Use of Teledentistry . Available at: rcdso.org/en-ca/rcdso- members/2019-novel-coronavirus/covid-19---emergency- screening-of-dental-patients-using-teledentistry “I’m refining my interviewing skills and learning to see my patients in a different context.” General Principles to Guide Remote Patient Interactions 1. Understand the privacy risks of virtual care tools 2. Obtain informed patient consent 3. Ensure record keeping meets regulatory requirements 4. Exercise your professional judgment These principles do not replace or supersede guidance provided by your provincial regulatory authority. CDA has been working to facilitate the use of code 05200 for teledentistry, and is assisting provinces to implement the code across Canada. With regards to adjudicating claims, some insurance companies have begun adding 05200 to plans, or are mapping it to codes that are already covered. Reference I ssues and P eople 18 | 2020 | Issue 4