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There are many challenges currently facing dental practices. Both in terms of being people’s businesses and livelihoods, and providing patients with the care they need, deserve and expect.

Numerous chemicals with adverse health effects are used at dental practices. Customers’ exposure to these is limited, because they only spend a short time at the dentist’s every so often. The staff, however, spend their days on the same premises year in, year out. This makes safe indoor air particularly important to them.

The computers at nurse’s stations, patient rooms and mobile workstations are used 24 hours a day. They are rarely manually wiped down or disinfected and there is seldom training or documented procedures around cleaning of computer workstations.

At a time when infection control is at the forefront of everyone’s thoughts, it is worth considering that not all decontamination is created equally. How clean is clean anyway?

Ever since I was 15 years old watching the mountain rescue teams respond to emergency calls, it has been my ambition to join them.

Micro-organisms or dust particles carrying infectious agents can remain airborne for an indefinite time when they are small enough. Current fibre filter (HEPA) based systems are not sufficient to prevent airborne transmission. Specialised air decontamination procedures are required to control infections.