Sustainable Dentistry: What We Are Doing At Ethical Dental
We think of sustainable dentistry in four key areas:
Environmental
People
Community
Financial
The following provides a short overview of some of our strategies to improve our sustainability as a team.
Environmental
“As oral health care providers, we have an ethical and moral responsibility to manage the impact of our activities on the environment and ensure that we do this in a sustainable manner.”
In 2021, we installed a solar system to reduce our carbon footprint and work towards sustainable dentistry. By the end of 2022, our goal is for our Coffs Harbour clinic to be 100% solar powered. Additionally, each clinic room has both general and recycled waste disposal. We currently recycle at least 50% of our waste. Where possible, the paper stock we use is both recycled and recyclable. You might notice this next time you receive an appointment reminder.
People
We give all our team members the option of full time, part time or casual hours to fit in with their work and family expectations. Dentistry is a physically and mentally demanding profession requiring intense focus for long periods and proper recovery. Therefore, we all usually work no more than four days per week seeing patients. All team members have ongoing learning plans and are supported to undertake courses to further their skills throughout different career phases. We also dedicate one hour per week to learning and sharing with other team members (‘team time’).
Community
We create sustainable contributions to the oral health of our community. This includes involvement with:
The Australian Dental Health Foundation (providing care for victims of domestic violence)
Supply of emergency dental kits for the local hospitals
Education for local groups and health professional colleagues, including training medical students
This year, our main community contribution goal is to provide additional resources for families transitioning their family members into aged care.
Financial
Our fees reflect what it takes to run our dental practice. We pay our staff above award wages, reflecting the higher level of proficiency and care that we expect from our team. This ensures that team members exceed industry standards in training and education. It also means our equipment and products are updated regularly and our standards in infection control are best-practice.
We agree with the saying ”The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten.”
Our journey towards a more sustainable dental practice is constantly evolving. We’re always open to ideas about possible future initiatives, so please don’t hesitate to contribute to this worthwhile aspiration.
If you would like more information about our sustainability projects, or if you would like to book an appointment at Ethical Dental call 6652 3185.
