Oklahoma dentist called 'menace to the public health'

Mar 30 2013

Dr. W. Scott Harrington faces an April 19 hearing over unsanitary conditions that may have exposed patients to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV infection. Health inspectors went to his practice after a patient with no known risk factors tested positive for both hepatitis C and the virus that causes AIDS.

The Associated Press: HIV Test Urged For 7,000 Oklahoma Dental Patients
Health officials on Thursday urged thousands of patients of an Oklahoma oral surgeon to undergo hepatitis and HIV testing, saying unsanitary conditions behind his office's spiffy facade posed a threat to his clients and made him a "menace to the public health." State and county health inspectors went to Dr. W. Scott Harrington's practice after a patient with no known risk factors tested positive for both hepatitis C and the virus that causes AIDS. They found employees using dirty equipment, reusing drug vials and administering drugs without a license (Juozapavicius, 3/29).

Los Angeles Times: Oklahoma Urges 7,000 Dental Patients To Get Hepatitis, HIV Tests
As many as 7,000 dental patients in Oklahoma are being urged to take blood tests for hepatitis or the virus that causes AIDS after health officials said they discovered that instruments in a local practice were not properly cleaned. The warning of possible infection from blood-borne viruses was issued Thursday by the Oklahoma State Department of Health, the Tulsa Health Department and the state Board of Dentistry. Letters will be sent to some of the patients of Dr. W. Scott Harrington, who operated a practice in Tulsa (Muskal, 3/28).

USA Today: HIV Test Urged For 7,000 Oklahoma Dental Patients
Health officials are urging 7,000 patients of an Oklahoma dentist to be tested for potential exposure to HIV, hepatitis B and hepatitis C. The possible exposure happened at the dental practice of Dr. W. Scott Harrington in Tulsa, Okla., and Owasso, Okla. (Lackey and Winter, 3/28).