OAR 818-026-0070
General Anesthesia Permit

General anesthesia, deep sedation, moderate sedation, minimal sedation and nitrous oxide sedation.
(1) The Board shall issue a General Anesthesia Permit to an applicant who:
(a) Is a licensed dentist in Oregon;
(b) In addition to a current BLS for Healthcare Providers certificate or its equivalent, maintains a current Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certificate and/or a Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certificate, whichever is appropriate for the patient being sedated, and
(c) Satisfies one of the following criteria:
(A) Completion of an advanced training program in anesthesia and related subjects beyond the undergraduate dental curriculum that satisfies the requirements described in the current ADA Guidelines for Teaching Pain Control and Sedation to Dentists and Dental Students consisting of a minimum of 2 years of a postgraduate anesthesia residency at the time training was commenced.
(B) Completion of any ADA accredited postdoctoral training program, including but not limited to Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, which affords comprehensive and appropriate training necessary to administer and manage general anesthesia, commensurate with these Guidelines.
(C) In lieu of these requirements, the Board may accept equivalent training or experience in general anesthesia.
(2) The following facilities, equipment and drugs shall be on site and available for immediate use during the procedure and during recovery:
(a) An operating room large enough to adequately accommodate the patient on an operating table or in an operating chair and to allow an operating team of at least three individuals to freely move about the patient;
(b) An operating table or chair which permits the patient to be positioned so the operating team can maintain the patient’s airway, quickly alter the patient’s position in an emergency, and provide a firm platform for the administration of basic life support;
(c) A lighting system which permits evaluation of the patient’s skin and mucosal color and a backup lighting system of sufficient intensity to permit completion of any operation underway in the event of a general power failure;
(d) Suction equipment which permits aspiration of the oral and pharyngeal cavities and a backup suction device which will function in the event of a general power failure;
(e) An oxygen delivery system with adequate full face mask and appropriate connectors that is capable of delivering high flow oxygen to the patient under positive pressure, together with an adequate backup system;
(f) A nitrous oxide delivery system with a fail-safe mechanism that will insure appropriate continuous oxygen delivery and a scavenger system;
(g) A recovery area that has available oxygen, adequate lighting, suction and electrical outlets. The recovery area can be the operating room;
(h) Sphygmomanometer, precordial/pretracheal stethoscope, capnograph, pulse oximeter, electrocardiograph monitor (ECG), automated external defibrillator (AED), oral and nasopharyngeal airways, laryngeal mask airways, intravenous fluid administration equipment; and
(i) Emergency drugs including, but not limited to: pharmacologic antagonists appropriate to the drugs used, vasopressors, corticosteroids, bronchodilators, intravenous medications for treatment of cardiac arrest, narcotic antagonist, antihistaminic, antiarrhythmics, antihypertensives and anticonvulsants.
(3) No permit holder shall have more than one person under general anesthesia, deep sedation, moderate sedation, minimal sedation or nitrous oxide sedation at the same time.
(4) During the administration of deep sedation or general anesthesia, and at all times while the patient is under deep sedation or general anesthesia, an anesthesia monitor, and one other person holding a current BLS for Healthcare Providers certificate or its equivalent, shall be present in the operatory in addition to the dentist permit holder performing the dental procedures.
(5) Before inducing deep sedation or general anesthesia the dentist permit holder who induces deep sedation or general anesthesia shall:
(a) Evaluate the patient and document, using the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) Patient Physical Status Classifications, that the patient is an appropriate candidate for general anesthesia or deep sedation;
(b) Give written preoperative and postoperative instructions to the patient or, when appropriate due to age or psychological status of the patient, the patient’s guardian; and
(c) Obtain written informed consent from the patient or patient’s guardian for the anesthesia. The obtaining of the informed consent shall be documented in the patient’s record.
(6) A patient under deep sedation or general anesthesia shall be visually monitored at all times, including recovery phase. A dentist permit holder who induces deep sedation or general anesthesia or anesthesia monitor trained in monitoring patients under deep sedation or general anesthesia shall monitor and record the patient’s condition on a contemporaneous record.
(7) Persons serving as anesthesia monitors for general anesthesia in a dental office shall maintain current certification in BLS for Healthcare Providers Basic Life Support (BLS)/Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) training, or its equivalent, shall be trained and competent in monitoring patient vital signs, in the use of monitoring and emergency equipment appropriate for the level of sedation utilized. (“competent” means displaying special skill or knowledge derived from training and experience.)
(8) The patient shall be monitored as follows:
(a) Patients must have continuous monitoring of their heart rate, heart rhythm, oxygen saturation levels and respiration using pulse oximetry, electrocardiograph monitors (ECG) and End-tidal CO2 monitors. The patient’s blood pressure, heart rate and oxygen saturation shall be assessed every five minutes, and shall be contemporaneously documented in the patient record. The record must also include documentation of preoperative and postoperative vital signs, all medications administered with dosages, time intervals and route of administration. The person administering the anesthesia and the person monitoring the patient may not leave the patient while the patient is under deep sedation or general anesthesia;
(b) Once sedated, a patient shall remain in the operatory for the duration of treatment until criteria for transportation to recovery have been met.
(c) During the recovery phase, the patient must be monitored, including the use of pulse oximetry, by an individual trained to monitor patients recovering from general anesthesia.
(9) A dentist permit holder shall not release a patient who has undergone deep sedation or general anesthesia except to the care of a responsible third party. When a reversal agent is administered, the dentist permit holder shall document justification for its use and how the recovery plan was altered.
(10) The dentist permit holder shall assess the patient’s responsiveness using preoperative values as normal guidelines and discharge the patient only when the following criteria are met:
(a) Vital signs including blood pressure, pulse rate and respiratory rate are stable;
(b) The patient is alert and oriented to person, place and time as appropriate to age and preoperative psychological status;
(c) The patient can talk and respond coherently to verbal questioning;
(d) The patient can sit up unaided;
(e) The patient can ambulate with minimal assistance; and
(f) The patient does not have nausea or vomiting and has minimal dizziness.
(11) A discharge entry shall be made in the patient’s record by the dentist permit holder indicating the patient’s condition upon discharge and the name of the responsible party to whom the patient was discharged.
(12) Pursuant to OAR 818-042-0115 (Expanded Functions — Certified Anesthesia Dental Assistant) a Certified Anesthesia Dental Assistant, when directed by a dentist permit holder, may introduce additional anesthetic agents to an infusion line under the direct visual supervision of a dentist permit holder.
(13) Permit renewal. In order to renew a General Anesthesia Permit, the permit holder must provide documentation of a current BLS for Healthcare Providers certificate or its equivalent; a current Advanced Cardiac Life Support (ACLS) certificate and/or a current Pediatric Advanced Life Support (PALS) certificate; and must complete 14 hours of continuing education in one or more of the following areas every two years: sedation, physical evaluation, medical emergencies, monitoring and the use of monitoring equipment, or pharmacology of drugs and agents used in sedation. Training taken to maintain current ACLS and/or PALS certificates may be counted toward this requirement. Continuing education hours may be counted toward fulfilling the continuing education requirement set forth in OAR 818-021-0060 (Continuing Education — Dentists).

Source: Rule 818-026-0070 — General Anesthesia Permit, https://secure.­sos.­state.­or.­us/oard/view.­action?ruleNumber=818-026-0070.

Last Updated

Jun. 8, 2021

Rule 818-026-0070’s source at or​.us