We carried out this announced inspection on 12 December 2017 under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. We planned the inspection to check whether the registered provider was meeting the legal requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations. The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who was supported by a specialist dental adviser.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following five questions:

• Is it safe?

• Is it effective?

• Is it caring?

• Is it responsive to people’s needs?

• Is it well-led?

These questions form the framework for the areas we look at during the inspection.

Our findings were:

Are services safe?

We found that this practice was providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found that this practice was providing effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found that this practice was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found that this practice was providing responsive care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

We found that this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

Blue Dental Care is located in Brixton and provides NHS and private treatment to patients of all ages.

.

The dental team includes nine dentists, three hygienists, four dental nurses who also act as receptionists, four trainee dental nurses and a practice manager. The practice has five treatment rooms.

.

The practice is owned by an individual who is the principal dentist there. They have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run.

On the day of inspection we collected 26 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with three other patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

During the inspection we spoke with three dentists, two dental nurses, a receptionist and the practice manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open 9.00am to 5.00pm Monday – Thursday and 9.00am to 5.00pm Fridays and Saturdays.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk.
• The practice had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.
• The practice had staff recruitment procedures, but improvement could be made to them
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff treated patients with dignity and respect and took care to protect their privacy and personal information.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs.
• The practice had effective leadership. Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The practice asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The practice dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements. They should:

• Review the practice's recruitment policy and procedures to ensure accurate, complete and detailed records are maintained for all staff.

• Review the practice's current audit protocols to ensure audits of key aspects of service delivery are undertaken at regular intervals and where applicable learning points are documented and shared with all relevant staff.

People who use the service told us that they were satisfied with practice. They told us that the staff were helpful and polite when they contacted the practice. They said that the dentists were professional and explained clearly the care and treatment plans.

Patients told us that the practice and dental instruments were clean and that the practice provided a comfortable environment for treatment.

A person said "I was an anxious patient when I first came to the surgery but felt reassured by the professional approach and attitude of the dentist".