Do you have an emergency medical response plan?

FACTS ON THE EMERGENCY DRUG KIT
An emergency drug kit is essential in the dental setting. The American Dental Asso­ciation states all dentists should have emergency drug kit and equipment along with the knowledge to properly use all items. The Council on Scientific Affairs has stated that “all dental offices” should maintain at least the basic recommended emergency equipment and drugs.1 Those drugs are albuterol, aspirin, diphenhydramine, epinephrine, glucose, nitroglycerin, and oxygen.

Emergency! What’s in the Emergency Kit?
Knowledge of the emergency drugs is a must for everyone on your dental team. Every person should be well versed in each com­ponent within the emergency drug kit. Each team member should know the action, the dose, and how to properly administer each drug in the kit. Rehearse this as a team each and every month. Never miss a month reviewing these drugs in the emergency drug kit.
The onset of a crisis is not the time to become familiar with the emergency drug kit. Sadly, so many dentists just believe that nothing will ever happen in their office. They do the first part right—that is—ordering and obtaining an emergency drug kit. Then they fail on the second part, knowing what is in the drug kit and how to use everything that it contains. Just because it is sitting on the shelf does not mean it is ready for use.
Emergency! Where is Our Emergency Kit?
Always know the location of your emergency drug kit. This also applies to the entire dental team. What good does an emergency drug kit do if it is locked-up somewhere in the dentist’s office? The emergency drug kit needs to be visibly seen in the office and in a central location. It must be readily available for any dental team member to obtain and its location should always be known by everyone on the team, including the doctor.

Emergency! Are You Reaching for an Expired Drug?
Always use an automatic renewal update program because doctors and their team al­ready have enough to do on a daily basis. Companies offer different types of renewal plans and you should investigate these plans fully with the company of your choice. In addition, you should know the cost of the renewal plan before you purchase a kit. Besides the renewal program, you should assign one team member in your office the duty of checking once a month for any drugs that might be expiring. This would also be a good time to rehearse the contents of the drug kit as well.
Never administer an expired drug! An expired drug is expired, period. It is good for nothing but pract­icing how to administer. However, you can use them for practice in mock emergency drills. If you are one of those who do not check their emergency drugs and then has a medical crisis, you are now a potential liability.
Read the Warnings on Your Local Anesthetic Inserts!
Read the package insert on the local anesthetic you are using everyday. Read the “WARNINGS” section be­cause it contains information that you will need to know before you administer that next local anesthetic. Are you injecting local anesthetic without having emergency drugs, equipment, and knowledge of their use in your office? This is a medicolegal binding document. You need to make abso­lutely 100% sure that you are fully compliant.

EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT
Besides the emergency drug kit, be sure you have an automated external defibrillator (AED) as well as equipment to maintain an airway. The AED should be in every dental office. What will you do when a patient has a sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in your office? What drug will you administer for a SCA? NONE! The only treatment for a SCA is an AED! Will EMS be at your office within 4 minutes to deliver the first shock? No! This is a piece of equipment you cannot afford to be without in your of­fice. Do you have the proper equipment to maintain an airway? Do you have equipment to retrieve an object that might occlude an airway? Do you have equipment to maintain an airway once it is opened? Do you have equipment to deliver positive pressure? Don’t attempt the “Ziploc” approach to airway equipment. Purchase an airway kit and reduce your stress