The Yukon Dental Association is hoping to have a plan in the next couple of weeks for a gradual return to regular service, says the association’s president.

Dr. Colin Nash explained in an interview Wednesday the association is in talks with the office of the chief medical officer of health and the Yukon government’s agency that regulates dentistry.

“We are trying to work on the details of a return-to-work-plan,” he said. “When it does happen, I see it happening in stages.”

Nash said he and the other dentists in Whitehorse are still providing what they describe as emergency or urgent services.

Emergency services include dealing with issues that could potentially be fatal, such as significant infections, significant trauma and prolonged bleeding, he said.

Nash explained dentists are monitoring their phones and are able to discuss a patient’s condition over the phone to determine if they need to be seen for treatment immediately.

Patients with any pain or concerns should call their dentist, he said.

Nash explained dentists are not travelling to the communities currently, but residents in the communities are coming to Whitehorse for treatment.

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen dentist offices increase their infection control protocols to ensure the safety of patients, staff and dentists, he said.

Nash said dentist offices have had to focus primarily on the issue of aerosols created by the air they use to run their drills and other equipment.

Those aerosols can stay in the air for up to three hours while remaining infectious, he said.

“There are quite a number of measures we are taking and it all relates to aerosols,” Nash said.

“We are taking those measures and following the most recent information that becomes available.”

The requirement that dentists only perform essential treatment is having a financial impact on dental offices, he said. Dentists are running at about five per cent of their normal work load.

The dentistry business, he said, has a high overhead cost, and five per cent of regular patients is not covering the costs.

Nash pointed out the federal government is offering programs to assist with the financial burden, as well as providing programs to assist staff who have been laid off.

His office, Whitehorse Dental Clinic, has had to lay off its dental hygienists and assistants, for instance, he explained.

Nash said the federal program does provide the flexibility for staff to return to work when needed while still remaining eligible for the federal assistance, provided they don’t earn more than $1,000 in a month.