BERKELEY, California--The Eco-Dentistry Association has announced its GreenDOC dental office certification program. The certification provides the first international standard for eco-friendly dental practice.
The GreenDOC Checklist: Standards for Green Dental Offices is the foundation of the program, providing eco-friendly initiatives in eight implementation categories, such as waste reduction, location, and patient care. The landmark certification program also includes worksheets, action plans, how to guide, and a product guide to help EDA members achieve the program's rigorous benchmarks through a simple-to-complete process.
"This is a critical development for dentistry," said Dr. Fred Pockrass, co-founder of the Eco-Dentistry Association. By defining what constitutes a green dental office through the GreenDOC program of the EDA, we're doing for dentistry what the U.S. Green Building Council did for building with their LEED certification program for building construction: setting rigorous, consistent, and attainable standards for the greening of our industry."
Prior to the GreenDOC program, dentists who wanted to lighten their environmental impact relied on the same initiatives as general businesses, such as using recycled paper or changing to more efficient light bulbs. Dentists could tap into local Green Business Certification Programs, where available, but they are not consistent across the country, and often do not include dentistry-specific standards.
"The GreenDOC program is the only certification with specific measures related to dental processes, procedures, and administration," explained Susan Beck, the director of the EDA. "This is a tremendous benefit for dentists who want to go as 'dark green' as possible; and for patients, who now have an easily recognizable seal that verifies their dentists' claims to practicing in an environmentally friendly way."
The Eco-Dentistry Association offers dental professionals resources, continuing education, and the opportunity to connect with patients looking for eco-friendly dentists, provides the public with information about green dental practitioners and products, and provides a link to EDA members in their area.
To date, the planet-friendly organization has registered eco-conscious members in the United States, Canada, Guam, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. The group's members hail from all over, including unexpected places like Waxahachie, Texas, Beachwood, Ohio, and Fort Bragg, N.C.
The organization is the brainchild of Dr. Fred Pockrass, a dentist, and his entrepreneur wife, Ina Pockrass. Six years ago, the couple created the model for eco-friendly dentistry, and operates their own award-winning dental practice in Berkeley, Calif., the first in the country to be certified as a green business. They formed the organization to stimulate a movement in the dental industry to employ.
More information can be found at Eco-Dentistry Association.
To read more about the Eco-Dentistry Association, go to Eco-Dentistry Association.
To comment on this subject, go to PennWell community dental site.
