We carried out this announced inspection on 5 April 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.

We told the NHS England area team and Healthwatch that we were inspecting the practice. They did not provide any information.

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

Oasis Dental Care Central - Carlisle is in Carlisle Cumbria and provides NHS and private treatment to patients of all ages.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including spaces for patients with disabled badges, are available near the practice either by the roadside or on a local car park.

The dental team includes three dentists, eight dental nurses of which one is a trainee, two dental hygienist therapist and two receptionists. The practice also accommodates eight final year dental students who work in the practice one and a half days per week. The practice has six treatment rooms all on the ground floor of the premises.

The practice is owned by a company and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the Care Quality Commission as the registered manager. Registered managers have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run. The registered manager at Oasis Dental Care Central - Carlisle was the practice manager.

On the day of inspection we collected 29 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with two other patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

During the inspection we spoke with one dentist, one dental nurse, one dental student, one receptionists and the practice manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday to Thursday 0800 – 1900hrs

Friday 0900 – 1500hrs

One Saturday per month for all patients

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 thorough staff recruitment procedures.
• 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.

We were not able to talk to any people who use the service on the day we visited but the practice undertook patient satisfaction surveys on a regular basis. The specific comments in this report have come from the most recent patient surveys.These included:

"Brill team, very professional".

"Excellent service".

"Even the injection was painless. Great".

"Excellent service, prompt and reassuring".