Introducing Dental Healing – the first certified Green Dental Office in Los Angeles, California.
Dental Healing recently became the first certified Green Dental Office in the city of Los Angeles, California. Today we talk to Dr. Chester Yokoyama, DDS about running a holistic dental practice and why he prefers MCC Dental Cabinets. Click on the image above to view the gallery.
MCC: Congratulations on being the first certified Green Dental Office in the city of Los Angeles and a climate leader in the state of California. What do these designations mean to you?
Dr. Yokoyama: Thank you! The City of Los Angeles is on the forefront when it comes to sustainability and eco-friendly choices and we are happy to be right there with them. We were excited to put our certified Green Dental Office to work. It has been a great pleasure for the employees and doctors to work in a clean, state of the art facility. Knowing that our office is ‘Green’ designed feels really good at the end of the day. I am proud to be an example of what can be accomplished in setting up a green dental work space. We also won the Cool California Climate Leader Award which was presented to me in Sacramento. This award was given to our office for energy efficiency and energy saving design by the State of California. It means a lot to the patients when they see that we have put huge efforts into creating a sustainable office design.
MCC: Your website says that your practice is the healthiest, most environmentally responsible dental facility in all of Los Angeles. All of your dental cabinets are MCC Dental Cabinets. Can you tell us why you selected our cabinets over all others and how that fits into your environmentally responsible practice?
Dr. Yokoyama: I looked into different cabinet companies with help from our Green Consultant and MCC Dental Cabinets came out on top. I was really interested in the company after I learned about Starboard, a cabinet building material with no seams. When I read that Starboard Inhibits 99.99% of Microbial Growth*, I knew that this was the material and the company that we wanted to use for our sterilization lab! Sterilization is really important and we wanted our process to be transparent for our patients; we built the sterilization lab with a glass window so patients can see what we are doing when we sterilize the instruments.
MCC: Which dental cabinet would you say is the most effective in your office and why?
Dr. Yokoyama: I believe the x-ray pass-through cabinet which allows us to take x-rays in two rooms is a huge benefit. I was worried that the actual day to day utilization of the x-ray head would prove to be difficult but instead I found that our assistants utilize the x-ray head quickly and efficiently in both rooms. Kudos to MCC for a very structurally sound and cosmetic design.
MCC: You believe that a patient’s mouth and the rest of their being should be in balance and harmony. Tell us about that and how you go about achieving that on a daily basis.
Dr. Yokoyama: As a holistic dentist, I think about dentistry as a part of the medical healing arts. We want to keep in mind that the body is connected to the mouth and the mouth is connected to the body. It is this simple idea that keeps the health of the bio system at the forefront of our diagnosis and treatment planning.
MCC: One of your referrals says they were referred to your practice by a Naturopath! You don’t hear that too often. Why do you think that’s the case?
Dr. Yokoyama: I believe we get referrals from naturopaths because we understand naturopathic concepts of healing; it is our job to remove any blockages that are in the way of the body healing itself. For instance, toxic materials should be removed safely and all infections should be completely eliminated from the teeth and gums. Therefore, we have zero tolerance for bleeding gums. Naturopaths work on very similar healing concepts.
MCC: Please tell us about how you incorporate accessibility into your dental practice and patient care.
Dr. Yokoyama: We follow the American Disabilities Act protocol for the layout of our office. We appreciate MCC for their attention to detail in making all dental spaces wheelchair accessible. Every dental chair is wheelchair accessible. We also have a front desk and sinks that are ADA accessible. It is something I wanted to have in the entire office. The staff loves the extra room and the patients always comment on the free and easy access.
To learn more about Dental Healing go to www.dentalhealing.com
Also here is a link for a 360-degree tour of the Dental Healing office.
To download a portable file of this Blog Post please click here.
* Note: This product does not protect users or others from disease-causing bacteria. Always clean this product thoroughly after use.
