We carried out this announced inspection on 18 July 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 that we were inspecting the practice. They provided some information which we took into account.

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

Canning Town Dental Practice is in the London Borough of Newham and provides NHS and private treatment to patients of all ages.

Stairs are used to access the practice. Car parking spaces are available near the practice.

The dental team includes four dentists, three dental nurses, a practice manager and two dental hygienists. The practice has three 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 five 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 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: 9:00am- 5:30pm

Tuesday 8:30am- 4:30pm

Wednesday 8:45-5:00pm

Thursday 8:30-4:30pm

Friday 8:00am -4:00pm

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 suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.
• The practice had 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 and acted on it.
• The practice dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk, although they required updating. There were some key identified high risk actions from a fire risk assessment and legionella risk assessment that had not been completed.

The provider responded appropriately within the required time frame to inform us of the actions they had undertaken to mitigate the risks.

We spoke to one person who used the service and they said the dentist explained the treatment they would be receiving and their treatment plan. We found people's diversity, values and human rights were respected. Information about care and treatment was provided in different languages for people whose first language was not english and in braille for people who were blind or visually impaired.

Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that was intended to ensure people’s safety and welfare. We found people's dental records contained relevant information including their medical history, the medications they were taking and lifestyle choices such as smoking. People were also given an oral assessment each time they visited the dentist.

We found that some equipment was not always properly maintained for the purpose it was meant for. However we found people were protected from the risk of infection because appropriate guidance had been followed. The provider had policies in place for infection control, packaging of instruments, decontamination and cross infection. Staff maintained the appropriate standards for hand hygiene and the sterilisation of clinical instruments.