Haere mai, welcome to the University of Otago Faculty of Dentistry: New Zealand’s National Centre for Dentistry

COVID-19 Alert Level 2 update

All University of Otago Faculty of Dentistry Dunedin Clinics are limited to providing Emergency Services Only until Monday 13 September. The Auckland Dental Facility is closed to all appointments.

As you will be aware, the Prime Minister has moved New Zealand to Alert Level 2 from 11:59pm Tuesday 7 September 2021, as we continue to combat COVID-19 disease.

However, for the Faculty of Dentistry Clinics – we will remain working under Alert Level 3 limitations until Monday 13 September. This is because we are waiting for instruction from our Government agencies on how to operate in Alert Level 2 and will need the extra time to set up our students, staff and buildings to operate safely as guided by the Ministry of Health and Dental Council New Zealand.

The range of dental treatment offered under Alert Level 3 remains the same as under Alert Level 4, which means treatment is still restricted to urgent and emergency* care ONLY – ie treatment that cannot be deferred.

*Emergency treatment is defined as including oral-facial trauma, significant infection, prolonged bleeding or pain which cannot be managed by medications.

Patients seeking emergency treatment should phone +64 3 479 8889 and advise of their oral health issue. If required, a clinician will call the patient back to assess the dental condition.

Only if the condition cannot be managed by medication and is deemed urgent by the clinician, will an appointment be made.

Carrying out dental procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic is considered high risk, requiring the clinician to wear additional protective clothing (PPE), which includes wearing a face shield and long-sleeved disposable gowns. This can seem intimidating to some people if you have not experienced this before, however it is designed to keep both the patient and clinician safe.

We are currently working through a process to determine how to reschedule appointments that have been cancelled while in lock down.

We appreciate your understanding and patience at this time while we work towards opening on Monday. This does mean that some treatment may need to be deferred, or take longer than usual to complete.

As one of the world’s top-50 dental schools* our mission is to pursue excellence in research, and to provide high-quality undergraduate and postgraduate education and training – to improve health nationally and internationally.

We teach oral health therapists, dental technicians, and dentists, dental specialists, and researchers, while also providing best-practice dental services to the community.