A dentist who has practiced in Iowa for less than two years has been cited for unsanitary conditions in his practice.
Harry Nguyen of West Des Moines was recently charged by the Iowa Dental Board with failure to maintain adequate safety and sanitary conditions for a dental office and failure to comply with standard precautions for preventing and controlling infectious diseases.
According to the board, Nguyen, who was first licensed to practice in Iowa in July 2024, was the focus of a complaint received by the board alleging “several areas of concern” related to his practice.
After an investigation was completed, the board found infection control deficiencies involving a lack of biohazard markings on containers, a lack of covers for dirty instruments being transported from the operating room, incomplete records related to spore testing, and dental assistants and hygienists who were cleaning the rooms without the required certification or supervision.
The board has not disclosed the name of the West Des Moines clinic where Nguyen worked or stated when the complaint was filed or when the investigation took place. Board records indicate the investigation may have been initiated sometime in 2025.
As part of a recent settlement with the board, Nguyen agreed to pay a $2,000 civil penalty and complete a comprehensive remedial education program focused on infection control procedures and ethics.
The Iowa Capital Dispatch was not able to reach Nguyen for comment.
Deputy Editor Clark Kauffman has worked during the past 30 years as both an investigative reporter and editorial writer at two of Iowa’s largest newspapers, the Des Moines Register and the Quad-City Times.
This article was originally published in the Iowa Capital Dispatch and republished by DrBicuspid under the Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. The Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. The Iowa Capital Dispatch maintains editorial independence.
