Coming soon: New West Broad Street office building!

Dear patients, parents, and friends of Wade Orthodontics,

I am writing with some exciting news that will impact our orthodontic practice and the routines of our patients over the next 12-18 months: our well-loved but aged West Broad Street office building is scheduled to be replaced with a brand-new building at the same location! Please read on for answers to some of your likely questions.

Our current building at 5249 West Broad Street is nearing 100 years old and needs extensive repairs and rehabilitation in order to continue to be useful to our patients and our team.  The building does not meet current ADA access standards.  After several years of considering options, I have concluded that a new building will best serve the needs of our patients, our team, and our West Broad neighborhood. 

Last year, I acquired the lot to our immediate west (5257 West Broad St) on which stand two old buildings in similar dated condition as our office. Our building plan calls for these two buildings to be razed as well and the two lots combined, with the new building spanning both lots.  The Prairie Lincoln zoning and planning board has approved these plans and shares our excitement about a renewed commitment to improve and modernize the Prairie Lincoln neighborhood with a brand-new structure. 

I have included architectural renderings of the new building (above), which will provide around 7,800 square feet of office space to be shared between Wade Orthodontics and a tenant business.   The new building will provide our practice with roughly 4,000 square feet of office space, over twice the usable square footage of our current structure. 

Some important items which may impact your family:

• During construction, which we anticipate will take just over a year starting in early 2024, we will be seeing all patients at our Upper Arlington location located at 3404 Riverside Drive, about a fifteen-minute drive from our West Broad Street office. We thank our West Broad-based patients in advance for your patience and consideration during construction, and we pledge to schedule your appointments efficiently and with your convenience in mind.  At the UA office, you will see the same Wade Orthodontics team members you’re used to seeing at West Broad…we all move back and forth together. 
• The final day for patient care at the existing West Broad office will be December 15, 2023.
• There will be no changes to any existing fees for any of our patients. All existing contracts will be honored without exception. 
• Exciting construction news and updates will be posted periodically on our SmileBytes blog which you can access through a link on our webpage at wadeorthodontics.com, as well as on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

We hope that you and your family will join in our excitement as we work toward creating a new and improved 5249 West Broad building!  You may have questions, and if so, we would very much like to hear from you.  Please send us an email at [email protected] or call the office at 614-878-7887.  I am happy to arrange a time for a personal call if that is preferred.

As always, thank you for being a valued member of the Wade Orthodontics patient family, and thank you for your support as we begin this exciting new chapter.

 

Kindest regards,

Dr. Andrew Wade and the Wade Orthodontics Team

 

 

 

 

Super Bowl Sunday Sm:)e Byte: Mouthguards with Braces?

On this Super Bowl Sunday, a question we receive frequently at Wade Orthodontics: "Do I need to wear a sports mouthguard with braces?" The best answer: yes!

For any sport that carries risk of head contact, a mouthguard is recommended, even if not specifically required by coaches and referees. If a patient wears braces, a mouthguard is no less important.  

In addition to protecting a patient's teeth from trauma (both to the teeth themselves and to the soft tissue of the inside of lips and cheeks), a mouthguard also helps protect against concussion. How?  If an athlete receives a traumatic blow to the jaw, the shockwave produced can be transferred from lower jaw to upper jaw and continue upward to the brain, potentially causing concussion. A mouthguard will help break up the shock wave before it reaches the brain.  

At Wade Orthodontics, most of the worst sports-related tooth injuries we have seen have occurred in sports where mouthguards are often NOT specifically required, such as basketball and soccer. Sports where mouthguards are required to gain access to the playing field (football, lacrosse, field hockey) have a much lower incidence of tooth trauma.  

Wade Orthodontics provides braces-friendly mouthguards at no additional charge to our patients.  Braces-approved mouthguards purchased from retailers are also OK to use. Custom mouthguards can be fabricated at our lab (typically for a fee) as-needed, most commonly for competing in martial arts.  Mouthguard questions? Interested in straighter teeth for you or your child?  Give Wade Orthodontics a call at 614-878-7887 or visit our website: www.wadeorthodontics.com

How long do I need to wear retainers?

One of the most common questions we are asked at Wade Orthodontics is: "How long will I have to wear retainers?"  The best two answers to that question are: 1) you should plan to wear your retainers indefinitely AND 2) you should wear retainers as long as you want your teeth to stay straight.  

A patient's teeth, once straightened, will never reach a point where they are permanently "set in stone" and incapable of moving or drifting.  Studies have shown that there will always be some risk of teeth relapsing.  The use of bonded or "glued-in" retainer wires will greatly reduce the risk of teeth relapsing, as will the consistent wearing of a removable retainer each night.  

So what does "indefinite" retainer wear mean?  At Wade Orthodontics, it means you should plan to keep retainers in place for as long as possible.  For many patients who have their teeth straightened during their teenage years, this means keeping retainers in place through the teens and hopefully into the twenties and beyond.  Unless there is a good reason to remove retainers (such as breakage, a new dental restoration, etc.) we recommend leaving retainers in place as long as possible.  Further questions?  Send us an email at [email protected].  Interested in orthodontic treatment?  Give Wade Orthodontics a call at (614) 878-7887.  

 

New COVID protocols for Wade Orthodontics offices (effective March 21, 2022)

Dear Wade Orthodontics patients and families,

Thank you for supporting our efforts at preventing COVID-19 transmission in our offices over the last two years through mask-wearing.  We are cautiously optimistic about the falling infection rates in central Ohio, and as such are ready to modify our office COVID protocols to reflect current threat levels.  

 

Starting on Monday, March 21st, 2022, the following changes will be in effect:

1) Mask-wearing will become optional in all parts of our offices for patients, parents, guardians and siblings

2) Mask-wearing will be encouraged for those at extra risk of COVID-19 infection or for those who are more comfortable wearing a mask.  

3) Masks will be readily available at the entrance of our offices if needed

4) The toothbrushing area will re-open in the office on a limited/case-by-case basis, at the direction of your orthodontic technician

 

What is NOT changing:

1) Our commitment to a safe, infection-free office environment 

2) Wade Orthodontics team members will continue to be masked at all times when working with patients in the clinical/treatment areas of our offices.  Team members may not always be masked in the administrative areas of our offices, such as at the front desk or conference rooms.

3) For the safety or our patients and office team, no one (including patients, parents, siblings or guardians) should enter our offices if knowingly sick, symptomatic, or recently-exposed to COVID-19.  

4) Infection-control barriers will stay in place as-needed throughout the offices

5) Mask/infection-control policies may be revised  or re-introduced at any time at our discretion based on changing COVID-19 conditions.  

 

Many thanks to all of our patients and their families for your cooperation and ongoing support of our COVID-19 precautions.  Best wishes for safety and health in the coming months.  

-Dr. Wade and the Wade Orthodontics Team

 

Check-in/out instructions for patients (updated 4/22/2021)

We look forward to your next visit to our office! Please note that the below protocols have been updated as of April 22, 2021.  We are currently seeing patients at both our Upper Arlington location (map link) located at 3404 Riverside Drive and our West Broad Street location (map link) located at 5249 West Broad Street.  Please check your text message reminders or call us (614-878-7887) to confirm the location of your appointment.  

BEFORE YOU LEAVE YOUR HOME: 

• Please brush your teeth and/or braces thoroughly.  Our toothbrush station remains closed due to COVID-19 precautions.
• Please use the restroom if necessary
• Don't forget to bring your retainer or removable appliance (if you have one)

ONCE YOU ARRIVE AT OUR OFFICE:

• Please enter the building no more than five minutes prior to your scheduled appointment time.
• No need to call prior to entering the building, please come in and let the front desk know you have arrived.
• Masks must be worn by everyone entering our office.  We will advise patients when it is appropriate to remove their mask for treatment.  
• Automatic hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed inside the front entrance to both of our office locations.  We ask all visitors to please sanitize your hands upon entering the office.  

PARENTS AND VISITORS:

• We are currently welcoming and encouraging one parent/guardian per patient age 18 and younger to accompany patients during their appointment.  
• Depending on clinic space we may ask parents/guardians to wait in our reception area during the appointment in order to maintain social distancing.
• We are hopeful we can safely welcome additional guests soon to our practice and play areas.  Until then, we kindly ask siblings, friends, and additional family members to wait in their car or at our outside table areas during appointments.  

SCHEDULING FUTURE APPOINTMENTS:

• While in the office, we ask each parent/guardian or patient to please schedule the next visit prior to leaving our office.  
• If parent/guardian is waiting in their vehicle, please call 614-878-7887 once your child is finished with their appointment to schedule the next appointment.  
• If possible, please schedule the next appointment prior to leaving our parking lot; this will help you get the appointment time you prefer during the timeframe Dr. Wade has recommended.   

PAYMENTS:

• On-premises payments can be made at any time via phone or at our reception desk.  Payment can also be done anytime via our website.

Thank you for your continued patience, cooperation and support of our practice.

The Wade Orthodontics Team

Still need to schedule your first post-coronavirus shutdown appointment?

As we continue to settle into our new normal routine, we would like to say thank you to our patients and patient families. Your grace and understanding was so appreciated while we worked though rescheduling over 800+ cancelled appointments. Thank you as well for your patience with our new safety measures for check-in, clinic protocol, payments, scheduling appointments, etc. 

If you have not heard from us to schedule your first appointment back after the coronavirus shutdown, please call 614-878-7887 as soon as possible to arrange your next visit.  

Our appointment calendar continues to be very full. If for some reason you are not able to keep an appointment that has been scheduled, please contact us as soon as possible so we may offer that appointment to another patient. 

Thank you,

The Wade Orthodontics Team

 

Check-in/out instructions for patients (updated 4/22/2021)

 We look forward to your next visit to our office! Please note that the below protocols are effective as of April 22, 2021.  We are currently seeing patients at both our Upper Arlington location (map link) located at 3404 Riverside Drive and our West Broad Street location (map link) located at 5249 West Broad Street.  Please check your text message reminders or call us (614-878-7887) to confirm the location of your appointment.

BEFORE YOU LEAVE YOUR HOME: 

• Please brush your teeth and/or braces thoroughly.  Our toothbrush station remains closed due to COVID-19 precautions.
• Please use the restroom if necessary
• Don't forget to bring your retainer or removable appliance (if you have one)

ONCE YOU ARRIVE AT OUR OFFICE:

• Please enter the building no more than five minutes prior to your scheduled appointment time.
• No need to call prior to entering the building, please come in and let the front desk know you have arrived.
• Masks must be worn by everyone entering our office.  We will advise patients when it is appropriate to remove their mask for treatment.  
• Automatic hand sanitizer dispensers have been placed inside the front entrance to both of our office locations.  We ask all visitors to please sanitize your hands upon entering the office.  

PARENTS AND VISITORS:

• We are currently welcoming and encouraging one parent/guardian per patient age 18 and younger to accompany patients during their appointment.  
• Depending on clinic space we may ask parents/guardians to wait in our reception area during the appointment in order to maintain social distancing.
• We are hopeful we can safely welcome additional guests soon to our practice and play areas.  Until then, we kindly ask siblings, friends, and additional family members to wait in their car or at our outside table areas during appointments.  

SCHEDULING FUTURE APPOINTMENTS:

• While in the office, we ask each parent/guardian or patient to please schedule the next visit prior to leaving our office.  
• If parent/guardian is waiting in their vehicle, please call 614-878-7887 once your child is finished with their appointment to schedule the next appointment.  
• If possible, please schedule the next appointment prior to leaving our parking lot; this will help you get the appointment time you prefer during the timeframe Dr. Wade has recommended.   

PAYMENTS:

• On-premises payments can be made at any time via phone or at our reception desk.  Payment can also be done anytime via our website.

Thank you for your continued patience, cooperation and support of our practice.

The Wade Orthodontics Team

 

COVID-19 Safety Measures: What to expect when you visit Wade Orthodontics

Dear Wade Orthodontics Patients and Families,

As we begin to re-open our practice after COVID-19 closure, we would like to make you aware of some changes to expect when you return to our office. The safety of our patients and our team is our #1 priority, and is the reason for all of the changes and policies listed below. For our current patients, we look forward to seeing you back at Wade Orthodontics, and for new patients, we look forward to meeting you!

 

CHANGES WE ARE MAKING TO KEEP YOU AND YOUR FAMILY SAFE:

 

-All of our team members will be wearing masks at all times, even our administrative team members who are not directly involved in patient care.

-Changes to the physical space in the office will include: 1) clear barriers at the front desk and other areas to allow for social distancing  2) our kids' play area will be closed and the reception room chairs will be much fewer in number and widely-spaced  3) the toothbrushing station will be temporarily closed (we ask that all patients brush thoroughly BEFORE leaving home to come to the office  4) reception room magazines and tables will be removed and the coffee station will be closed 5) we will only be using every other dental chair to allow 10'+ of space between patients while in the office.

-There will be a one-way traffic flow for patients as they go through their appointment. Patients will enter through the front of the office, exit through the rear of the office and return to the parking area.

-Every patient will be asked standard COVID-19 screening questions upon arriving at the office, including 1) recent history of fever >100 degrees 2) recent history of cough or trouble breathing 3) confirmed or possible exposure to coronavirus within the last 14 days. Additionally, our team will be taking and logging our own temperatures every morning to screen for coronavirus infection. With safety our #1 priority, we reserve the right to reschedule any patient whom we deem poses a significant infection risk.  

 

WHAT WE ASK OF OUR PATIENTS AND THEIR FAMILIES:

-We ask for your full cooperation with all of our safety precautions, which have been put in place to maximize patient/team safety and are in compliance with the best infection-control practice recommendations of the CDC, the Ohio Department of Health, the Ohio State Dental Board and the American Association of Orthodontists. 

-Please understand that even though our office is re-opening, we will not be doing "business as usual" for some time. Safety concerns will guide every decision and policy that we make, and may at times outweigh patient wishes and/or convenience. Thank you in advance for your continued patience and flexibility as we together navigate the coronavirus pandemic.

-We strongly encourage parents/drivers to wait in their vehicle during their child's appointment. Please ensure your child knows your personal cell phone number and be prepared for us to call you to discuss screening questions, treatment progress, arrange payments and to schedule a future visit. If it is essential that you enter the building with your child, you will be required to wear a mask at all times. Adult patients are expected to come into the building unaccompanied. All patients are free to wear a mask as they enter/exit the building, but they will be asked to remove their mask during their appointment. At no time will we allow more than one accompanying family member into the office with their child; at this time we cannot allow siblings, friends or additional family members into the office.

-For new patient or treatment planning appointments, one parent should come into the building with their child, provided the parent is wearing a mask. Our new patient exam room has been set up with physical barriers to allow for social distancing. If you would like, we can arrange a FaceTime session so that another parent or family member can be involved in the new patient discussion.   

-Please ensure each patient brushes their teeth thoroughly and uses the restroom before leaving home for our office. Our toothbrushing station will be closed for safety, and we would like to minimize use of the patient restroom.  

 

WHAT WILL NOT BE DIFFERENT DURING COVID-19 PRECAUTIONS:

1) Our commitment to quality, timely treatment of our patients and our love for what we do  2) The individual care and attention you have come to expect from our Team and 3) The warm, friendly vibe of our office....we'll be smiling at you underneath our masks! 

 

Best wishes to all our patient families for continued health and safety-

Sincerely,

Dr. Andrew Wade and the Wade Orthodontics Team

Happy news! Wade Orthodontics to re-open for regular appointments starting the week of May 4th

Dr. Wade and Team are happy to announce that Wade Orthodontics will be re-opening for regular (non-emergency) patient appointments beginning the week of May 4 in response to Governor DeWine's recent lifting of COVID-19 quarantine for dental offices.

When we re-open for business, the safety of our patients and our team members will be our #1 priority as has been the case throughout the coronavirus pandemic.  So although we will re-open for business, there will be numerous new safety precautions and policies in place that will look different than before the pandemic began.  We will circulate more details about our upcoming safety procedures over the next couple of days.

We understand our patients are eager to resume treatment and we will be in contact with all of our patient families during the next few days to arrange a next visit. Due to scheduling volume, we would ask that our patients wait to be contacted rather than calling the office. 

We thank all of our patients and their families for their patience during the inconveniences of the last two months, and we ask for your continued patience as we go through the process of re-starting patient care.  In particular, we ask for strict adherence to our new safety guidelines and for flexibility in scheduling during this difficult time. 

To our cherished patients and their families: We've missed you and look forward to resuming your treatment shortly!

Best wishes for safety and health,

Dr. Andrew Wade and the Wade Orthodontics Team

NOTE: Please check our website frequently as we anticipate several new posts later this week.  

 

UPDATE: Office closure extended through April 30 due to COVID-19 precautions; emergency care available by appointment.

Dear patients, patient families and friends of Wade Orthodontics,

We hope you all are remaining safe and healthy during this difficult and unprecedented time. 

In keeping with the requests of Governor Mike DeWine, the Ohio State Dental Board and American Dental Association we are cancelling all non-emergency appointments from now thru April 30.  As soon as we are given the “ok to return to work” order from the Governor, State Dental Board, or American Dental Association, we will begin rescheduling patients for that time.  Rest assured, we understand the sense of urgency many of you are feeling to continue your treatment. We will work to get back to regular appointments as soon as possible. 

You may recall from our last message that all routine orthodontic appointments fall under the category of elective treatment, except in those cases where patients are experiencing pain due to damaged orthodontic appliances.  We will continue to answer telephones during regular business hours and provide emergency orthodontic procedures by appointment only.  Emergency care will be provided using all recommended protocols issued by the CDC. 

If you have an orthodontic emergency please call our main office number (614-878-7887) for instructions.  

The health and safety of our team and patients remains our greatest priority.  Best wishes to all of our patient families for physical and emotional wellness throughout this difficult time, and know that your friends at Wade Orthodontics are here to help in any way we can.

Dr. Andrew Wade and the Wade Orthodontics Team