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Urgent message from Dr. Jeff and the JKO team

By March 16, 2020May 22nd, 20222 Comments
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*UPDATED* May 15th at 8:04 am – 

We’re reopening on May 18th!

Dear JKO Friends and Family, 

We would like to update you on the state of our reopening. Our JKO team is working hard in order to make sure that our office is in order and ready to see our patients at this time. We’re still currently closed and are seeing emergency patients at this time. However, we are targeting a soft reopening date of May 18th, 2020. This means that we will be lightening our patient load to practice the new protocols we have put into place. We will reach out to you to reschedule your appointments.

Rescheduling appointments affected by COVID-19

We understand you may have concerns regarding your appointments that were cancelled due to COVID-19. We promise you we will do everything we can to get you rescheduled in a timely manner. At this moment in time, we will be contacting you to reschedule yours/your child’s appointment. Our goal is to reschedule appointments based on the order they were originally booked. We ask for your patience with our team as they are working diligently to accommodate your needs. While we’re rescheduling our appointments, our phone lines may temporarily be busy, so if you should have any questions regarding scheduled appointments, the best way to contact us is by email at: info@jkortho.com.

For frequently asked questions, please see below:

Do I need to reschedule my appointment during this time?

We will be in touch as soon as we can confirm our opening date. We promise you we will do everything we can to get you rescheduled in a timely manner.

Where can I find more updates about reopening?

We will be sending emails out to you about updates in our office, you can also stay informed by following our social media on InstagramFacebook, and looking for updates here on our blog.

I’m concerned that I won’t be seen for a long time, what’s the best way to reach out if I have questions about how my treatment is currently going or want to check in with Dr. Jeff about my braces, aligners, elastics and appliances?

Our web team has created an online check-in page to help with this! We highly recommend reaching out, especially if you are close to running out of aligners (you have less than 10 remaining), or you’re wearing elastics in your treatment. We are here for you and will get back to you within 24-48 hours of receiving your online check-in.

What should I do if I want to schedule a new patient consultation?

We’re looking forward to meeting you! Give us a call at (916) 933-0532 or head to our website to schedule a new patient consultation. Another option we’ve added is a virtual consultation. You can head to our Virtual Consultation page. When you’re there, just watch the video and follow the instructions. When we receive the information, we’ll be in touch with you.

What will be different when you’re back to seeing patients?

We ask for your patience and flexibility with our office and team as we are all trying to navigate this new way of seeing patients. While there will be some changes in protocol, we’ll be building on a solid foundation based on patient and team safety. Right now, we’re prepping behind the scenes for our soft opening on May 18th, 2020.  We’ll send out a message with what to expect when you’re back in our office.

What has Dr. Jeff been doing with this time?

Well, Dr. Jeff hasn’t been able to grow a beard, so that hasn’t changed much. Like everyone in this brave new world, he’s been sitting in a lot of Zoom calls and has racked up over 50 hours of continuing education (his virtual Zoom background is straight out of Star Wars). Dr. Jeff’s additional job as a homeschool teacher has been an interesting experiment, and he’s determined to get the hang of it. Balance has been important, so in addition to running, cycling and makeshift home workouts, he’s had lots of ice cream (PB & chocolate, coffee almond fudge, strawberry”¦it’s a long list). One of the coolest things was 3D printing masks for frontline workers (https://www.villagelife.com/news/masking-healthcare-heroes-3d-style/). He’s also been in touch with a lot of our local small business owners, so keep your eyes peeled for something neat!

We miss you. Like”¦a lot! We love and appreciate your support and patience during this time. We want to ensure that you, your loved ones, our team and their loved ones continue to feel safe in our practice.

Virtual high fives, hugs and fist bumps,

TeamJKO

*UPDATED* May 7th at 2:12 pm –

Although we are an essential business, we have not been given the go-ahead to see patients for elective appointments. We know that this isn’t the news you want to hear, and this also is not the news I want to give you. Thankfully, this is only temporary and as soon as we can see you, we’ll let you know!

We miss you. Like”¦a lot! We love and appreciate your support and patience during this time. We want to ensure that you, your loved ones, our team and their loved ones continue to feel safe in our practice.

Rescheduling appointments affected by COVID-19

We understand you may have concerns regarding your current appointment. We promise you we will do everything we can to get you rescheduled in a timely manner. Our goal is to reschedule appointments based on the order they were originally booked.

If you should have any questions regarding scheduled appointments, the best way to contact us is by email at: info@jkortho.com.

For frequently asked questions, please see below.

Do I need to cancel/reschedule my appointment during the office closure?

You do not have to cancel. We will be in touch as soon as we can confirm our opening date. As of now, we are holding off on rescheduling appointments until we get a confirmation on a reopening date.

When will I be able to get back in? 

We promise we will do our best to see you the soonest we possibly can. We cannot give you an exact date, but you can stay informed by following our social media and looking for updates on our blog here.

What’s the best way to reach out if I have questions about how my treatment is currently going or want to check in with Dr. Jeff about my aligners, elastics, the best Netflix shows to binge, etc.?

Our web team has created an online check-in page to help with this! We highly recommend reaching out, especially if you are close to running out of aligners (you have less than 10 remaining), or you’re wearing elastics in your treatment. We are here for you and will get back to you within 24-48 hours.

What should I do if I want to schedule a new patient examination?

Although we can’t see you in person right now, we’re looking forward to meeting you. If you have questions or concerns, we’re here for you. You can head to our Virtual Consultation page. When you’re there, just watch the video and follow the instructions. When we receive the information, we’ll be in touch with you.

What will be different when you’re back to seeing patients?

While there will be some changes in protocol, we’ll be building on our solid foundation. Right now, we’re prepping behind the scenes and when we have a date for reopening, we’ll send out a message with what to expect when you’re back in the office.

What has Dr. Jeff been doing with this time?

Well, Dr. Jeff hasn’t been able to grow a beard, so that hasn’t changed much. Like everyone in this brave new world, he’s been sitting in a lot of Zoom calls and has racked up over 50 hours of continuing education (his virtual Zoom background is straight out of Star Wars). Dr. Jeff’s additional job as a homeschool teacher has been an interesting experiment, and he’s determined to get the hang of it. Balance has been important, so in addition to running, cycling and makeshift home workouts, he’s had lots of ice cream (PB & chocolate, coffee almond fudge, strawberry”¦it’s a long list). One of the coolest things was 3D printing masks for frontline workers (https://www.villagelife.com/news/masking-healthcare-heroes-3d-style/). He’s also been in touch with a lot of our local small business owners, so keep your eyes peeled for something neat!

Virtual high fives, hugs and fist bumps,

Team JKO

March 26th at 7:52 pm – 

The California Dental Association has recommended we continue to see patients on an emergency basis until further notice.

March 16th at 6:00 pm –

The past 72 hours have been difficult for many of us. Due to the most recent CDC recommendations and following the lead from the California Dental Association (CDA) this morning, we have made the decision to reschedule our non-emergency appointments for the next 2 weeks.

As a locally owned small business and as someone who genuinely cares about our community, it is our social responsibility to slow the spread of COVID-19 and to protect our patients, team, and our families from inadvertent exposure. I fully understand the inconvenience this places on our patients and their families, and the disappointment this may bring to our patients starting and ending their smile journeys. By doing our part to help flatten the curve, I hope that this will help protect and save the lives of many of our loved ones who are in the most susceptible groups. Our team will be reaching out to all patients affected by this closure over the rest of this week to accommodate patients with new appointments and sending additional instructions to our patients on how we plan to proceed during the closure.

Our phone lines are open for emergency calls and our team will be available to help you via phone, text, and email. Please understand that our phone lines can become busy as we are trying to connect with a large number of patients. We will continue to monitor this situation and keep everyone posted through all possible channels.

This has been one of the most difficult decisions of my career, and ultimately my priority is the safety and health of our patients, team members, and the community as a whole. With everything that is going on, please remember that there are still reasons to smile (they’re probably home with you right now =). We appreciate your wonderful support, your kind understanding and we’re hopeful that a happier, healthier future will be here soon.

Dr. Jeff and the team at Jeffrey Kwong Orthodontics

#LiveSmileGiveRepeat

To read our COVID-19 FAQ guide for Orthodontic patients click here.

Join the discussion 2 Comments

  • Suzanne Sands says:

    Hi there! I spoke with Dr. Kwong a couple of weeks ago and he mentioned a portal? where I can submit pictures for him to check how things are going. Where would I find this on your website? He said it walks you through the specific pictures to take and submit to him, etc. My first follow up appointment would have been tomorrow, April 22 but I have not heard from anyone yet about rescheduling. Will you be contacting me soon? I wish to secure an appointment asap. Thank you.

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