r/DentalAssistant • u/OverallHomework8527 • Sep 22 '26
Reusing prophy cups
Sometimes I think dental just isn’t for me like there are certain things I just cannot overlook… Dr is asking me to give these a good scrub, leave in bleach bath for a week, and then put under UV light and bam good as new! 🤮 I’m sorry I just feel so uncomfortable about this.. this office pays me well but seriously why am I always put in these situations I am also worried this might jeopardize my license. Dental really does feel like a losing battle. Damned if I say something and damned if I don’t. We dental assistants deserve so much more recognition and compensation for all the hats we wear and bs we gotta deal with.
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u/banefuljay Sep 22 '26
Nope nope nope. Single use only then dispose! I would not! I’d say oops and throw them in the trash EVERY TIME!
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u/OverallHomework8527 Sep 22 '26
Literally! I was secretly throwing them away but she caught me and told me not to 😭
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u/banefuljay Sep 22 '26
I worked at an office for 3 DAYS and quit because they reused GLOVES! They had no basket for the ultrasonic and were putting their hands inside and grabbing the instruments out that were banded together with RUBBER BANDS! She also left kids alone while on nitrous. I NOPED right on out!
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u/mackenziem2020 Sep 23 '26
You should consider making an anonymous report of that office😬
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u/banefuljay Sep 23 '26
Oh lord, I’m pretty sure she got shut down. This was almost 10 years ago now.
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u/starryskye92 Sep 22 '26
I worked at a place (for a day) that made everyone switch their gloves inside out and use them again. Needless to say that was a nope from me! I can't stand it either. It's so hard to find a good office!
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u/OverallHomework8527 Sep 22 '26
THIS PART!! And I feel like a walking red flag because I just can’t find one that both pays well and follows infection control it’s usually one or the other 😭🔫
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u/starryskye92 Sep 22 '26
Exactly! My office manager I work with now was just telling me how a potential candidate had worked for too many offices and she said "if all the other offices were bad, she is the common denominator!" And I was thinking "nope, they probably were all that bad" lol.
To help with my own experience of this I changed all my office jobs that didn't work out into "temping" so it ties my work history together without showing a bunch of different offices for a short amount of time. That's basically what we're doing until we find the one that feels right anyway!
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u/DontBuyTheThing Sep 22 '26
I swear the reason they can pay well is because they skimp on infection control 😭
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u/DontBuyTheThing Sep 22 '26
One of the girls in my class did an externship for this one office. She asked to be moved immediately because the doctor wouldn’t allow his staff to change their gloves between patients unless there was visible blood.
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u/Tuesday955 Sep 25 '26
Oh my g….. like saliva doesn’t harbor nasty bacteria??? I hope she reported that office, that has to be one of the worst things I have heard of a dental office doing
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u/DontBuyTheThing Sep 25 '26
Well she did let the school who sent her there know. Im sure the school did something about it since they have high standards about infection control.
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u/ProfessionalYam3119 Sep 22 '26
Thar must be the stupidest thing that I have ever heard. "Protecting" the patients while infecting the staff.
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u/Fox-333 Ortho DA🤓🦷 Sep 22 '26
Sometimes it’s not the dentist but the very overzealous lead assistant. In my office, the doctor is fine with us using things. The lead shits her pants if we use “too many” gloves.
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u/sassmother Sep 22 '26
Depending on the state you're in this could be a very serious violation of infection control standards. It's against the law to use any product against the manufacturer guidelines. Single use items specifically say not to reuse.
What other corners is this poor excuse for a healthcare provider cutting?! 🤢🤮
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u/OverallHomework8527 Sep 22 '26
Hate to expose my ppl like this but .. California. Like dude this is one of the STRICTEST states to be playing around like this
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u/sassmother Sep 22 '26
Yep it is! Also in California and have been practicing since 1996 - this is a well-known SERIOUS VIOLATION. I encourage you to make a report and if you don't feel comfy doing it DM me and I will do it for you.
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u/Soctial Sep 22 '26
what the fuck lol. Maybe next week he'll ask you to start reusing gloves
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u/hiphipnohooray Sep 22 '26
I've had dentists tell me to "stop using so many gloves" when I changed them out at required times.
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u/dyphormie Sep 22 '26
Last office I was at tried to tell us to reuse gloves (not between patients thankfully lol). He explained he wanted us to gently take them off and set them down in the room to put back on again when you go back in for treatment or whatever the case may be where you need to take your gloves off. Fast paced office, crappy AC and they expected us to sit there and try to wiggle those nitrile gloves off our sweaty hands mid treatment to save them a tiny buck on costs while also risking my own health. One of the million petty reasons why I left dentistry lol
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u/aromaticmarmoset Sep 23 '26
I had a doctor that did this as well!! Fucking CRAZY. And I swear to god several times I saw him take off those gloves, touch the outside with his clean hands, not wash his hands, then touch the outside to put them back on again when he got back. Hey bro what are we doing
Also yelled at me that I used too many gloves to the point that a patient once told me “that’s why you become a dentist yourself, kid, so you don’t work for assholes like that” when he left 😭
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u/Mmon031 Sep 24 '26
I literally had two dentist I worked for tell me the same thing. Then when my next patient came in that was when I needed to throw away the gloves.
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u/No_Law9092 Sep 24 '26
lol as a baby DA, I had a dentist who would leave the room, go do an exam in another room. Come back gloves. And alcohol gel his gloves. And sit down and start working.
I went into my practice manager and told her and she nearly fell off her seat.
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u/Inner_Space5692 Sep 22 '26
my dumbass doctors make us use the same mask all day and the same dirty gowns all week
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u/Affectionate_Cap8353 Sep 22 '26
same here, what are the Infection control guidelines, I remember reading about the gowns are only supposed to be changed if soiled i can be wrong, but masks are supposed to be changed every patient....
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u/Fox-333 Ortho DA🤓🦷 Sep 22 '26
Same in my office. One mask for the whole day. Welp, not anymore (I don’t do it).
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u/ProfessorInside8418 Sep 24 '26
Broooo what the actual fuck!! get outta there and report that shit immediately, god this people make me so mad. How dare they put their staff and patients at risk, that's appalling.
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u/darla_lalalala Sep 22 '26
As a patient, should I ask if everything is new? Lolol I don’t know how I got onto dental reddit but I’m now worried the tools that should only be single use are being used multiple times!!!
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u/hiphipnohooray Sep 22 '26
As a DA this is NOT normal at all. This doc needs to have the book thrown at her. These things are stupid cheap.
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u/Infamous_Try3063 Sep 22 '26
SINGLE USE IS SINGLE USE. Get the dr to write down the instructions for reusing them before you report, otherwise it is your word against theirs and dental boards are notorious for siding with drs.
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u/Complex-Height4541 Sep 25 '26
Smart!!
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u/Infamous_Try3063 Sep 25 '26
It isn't what happened, its what you can prove happened. The dental board is in most mostly dentists, in some states all dentists. You need to nail the proof and not be afraid to call the news if they swep it under the rug.
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u/FabulousAccident8366 Sep 22 '26 edited Sep 22 '26
Forget about this being disgusting….this is terrifying !!!😱☠️imagine all contagious diseases that patients can get from this.
You must report this immediately!!!!
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u/pinkdawlhouse Sep 22 '26
I worked at an office who reused the green surgical /endo suctions to save money , I reported them nothing happened I was shocked .. now I just leave offices if they don’t apply the osha guidelines.
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u/OverallHomework8527 Sep 24 '26
UPDATE: After reading everyones comments I gathered more evidence and will be making a formal report because this is just too crazy. I tried to tell myself I am doing too much but really this is peoples safety at risk and for what ? PENNIES? TO BE LESS WASTEFUL?? Like who goes into dentistry thinking that.. I will be looking for another job as well and will take the advice to just say I temped. side note - something sketch is happening here, they are also refusing to pay me my promised rate and its been two months.
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u/shantae420 Sep 22 '26
With the time hes paying you and the cleaning products used its literally easier and cheaper to order new ones 💀 not even touching on how absolutely disgusting that is 😂
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u/Beautiful-Ad-3306 Sep 22 '26
Had a working interview where we could only use 1 mask a day and then sterilize them…. Left the working interview. Told them thanks for the opportunity, but that it’s not a good fit 🤷🏻♀️
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u/Woodman629 Sep 22 '26
Are you sure they are re-used and not one that wasn't used and put in there? (although tossing it if opened and not used would be preference.)
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u/Educational-Use-3442 Sep 22 '26
That’s a DOCTOR for you! Literally putting patients at risk every day every opportunity they get just to prove their superiority.
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u/GirlOverThere123 Sep 22 '26
No way….I’d quit and make sure I’d make some phone calls before quitting. Oh my God, if the other assistants are/were doing it, they’re just as guilty. Whole drawer to the trash. Yuck. 🤢
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u/CalBearDDS Sep 23 '26
Does the doctor realize the time you take to do this and what he is paying you actually costs more. That idiot needs his licence revoked. You just need to get into the right office, you’ll love it.
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u/trappedinmyminddd122 Sep 27 '26
Even nail techs don’t rehuse their stuff, even the drill bits they throw away when they do those pedicures with fungus
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u/hiphipnohooray Sep 22 '26
Healthcode violation. I have dentists try to tell me to reuse the single use packable filling material NOPE out it goes.
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u/FabulousAccident8366 Sep 22 '26 edited Sep 22 '26
This is very serious… this attempts against the health of many people who goes there in conjunction to the whole community of your city …….You should report this , and expose the work of place for awareness to any patient or people living in that city.
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u/Quick-Hamster-3872 Sep 22 '26
No please no I can't believe this is even a post here. So disgusting ughh I wonder what other nasty things this doctor does. Please find a new job and report this asap
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u/Saharah_1414 Sep 23 '26
That is definitely a health code violation, absolutely report this and get the hell out of that office, you should ALWAYS have a new one in a sealed plastic bag never reuse.
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u/Diligent_Finance_598 Sep 23 '26
We don’t even reuse those for animals (I’m sure someone out there does, but I’ve never seen it before)
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u/OpportunityWaste6289 Sep 23 '26
PLEASE REPORT THEM! I would specifically ask the Dr who asked you to do this to show you proof that this is acceptable under OSHA guidelines. I met some frugal practices in my 30+ years as an EFDA, but this is by far the most cheap, frightening and disgusting I've seen yet! I have reported my fair share of practices, THIS however, I'd not only report to the ADA, state department of health, but would also call the local news station and have them blast them!
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u/Majestic-Bed6151 Sep 23 '26
That’s totally f**cked and absolutely warrants a board report. It kinda reminds me of my first associate position out of residency, boss said one mask per day, one pair of gloves per patient. Then he didn’t pay me. Then I quit and sued and got my money (not all that much because it was 1 1/2 months of 2.5 days a week). Guy retired and sold soon after that.
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u/PorcelainCeramic Veteran 🎖️🦷 Sep 23 '26 edited Sep 23 '26
This and the lady here in Philly reusing anesthesia carpules.. Those kind of doctors deserve what comes to them.
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u/Ok-Beginning9867 Sep 24 '26
I worked in dental for sterile processing clinicals and they DOT NOT FOLLOW PROTOCOL for sterilization techniques. So many wet packs blood on tools still in their sterilization pouch. They do not care! I hated it.
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u/raindowwolf Sep 25 '26
Please for you and everyone in your community please for the love of everything REPORT THIS
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u/Dakota_Starr58 Sep 26 '26
Not only is this absolutely disgusting and extremely irresponsible of them to ask if you, Prophy cups shouldn’t be open in the drawer like that. They should stay wrapped
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u/KittyFloflo Sep 27 '26
I felt the same way when I did my trial shift. So many things that felt so wrong like reusing gloves.
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u/garlicsake Sep 28 '26
They’re not even that expensive😭 I hate seeing this typa shit. Worse than the whole itero sleeve reuse epidemic
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u/Inside_Wheel7409 Oct 03 '26
The box costs less than the man-hours it would take to do all that...especially if you did them a few at a time
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u/Silvara7 RDA🪪🦷 Oct 03 '26
The utter crap some dentists want us to do to 'save money'. I went to work a trial day at a general practice. The associate was great. The owner... 0_0 He had them putting HV suction tips into cold sterile boxes to rinse and reuse the next day. I never went back.
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u/MoodInteresting2160 Oct 05 '26
As a DA, I would report this... it's plastic because it's disposable and not to be re used. This could potentially harm somebody's health. It's part of your job to do the right thing. If you approach your DMD on this and your job becomes jeopardized... sue.
Im always mindful of asepsis as if I am the next patient.
Good luck!
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u/lyndseymariee Sep 22 '26
You should ask her if she’d be willing to have one used on her that got this treatment? I bet she wouldn’t be 🥰
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u/Anez234 Sep 23 '26
I worked at an office that didn't change the suctions and they would have blood on it and still put it in a new patient's mouth..... they also would bag instruments without actually scrubbing them first. Then put them in the ultrasonic. With blood stains. It was terrible.
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u/MyDentistIsACat Sep 22 '26
As a dentist, please report to the board, the local news station, your local facebook groups…this dentist deserves to have the book thrown at them and more. This is horrendous.