We carried out this announced inspection on 20 June 2018 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

Chase Dental Practice is in Cannock and provides NHS and private treatment to adults and children.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including for blue badge holders, are available near the practice.

The dental team includes one dentist, two dental nurses, one dental hygienist and a receptionist who also works as the practice manager. The practice has two 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 31 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with three other patients.

During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist, two dental nurses and the receptionist who also works as 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 Friday from 9am to 12.45pm and 2pm to 5pm.

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• The practice staff had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were not all available, but these were purchased immediately following this inspection.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk. Risk assessments were reviewed and updated on a regular basis.
• The practice staff had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children. Staff had completed safeguarding training.
• The practice had thorough staff recruitment procedures. The practice had a stable staff group with staff having worked at the practice for over 17 years.
• 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 practice was providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs.
• The practice had effective leadership and culture of continuous improvement.
• 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 staff had suitable information governance arrangements.

There was an area where the provider could make improvements. They should:

• Review the practice's responsibilities to take into account the needs of patients with disabilities and to comply with the requirements of the Equality Act 2010.
• Review the availability of equipment in the practice to manage medical emergencies taking into account the guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the General Dental Council.

This was a scheduled inspection to assess compliance with the following regulations;

•Cleanliness and infection control

•Assessing and monitoring the quality of service provision

During our inspection we spoke with two dentists, a receptionist and two dental nurses. We spoke with two patients who both gave very positive feedback about the care and treatment they had received.

The prevention and control of infection and decontamination of instruments was effectively carried out in accordance with best practice guidance from the Department of Health in a room dedicated for that purpose.

There were effective systems in place to regularly assess and monitor the quality of service in order to identify and manage risks. People who use the service were asked for their views on the care and treatment they received.

We arranged this inspection two days in advance of our visit. This was to make sure that staff were available to speak with us. We spoke with the practice manager, a dental nurse and a dentist. We also spoke with nine people, including children who were registered with the service to gain their views about the treatment and care they received.

People told us their treatment and any associated costs were explained to them before treatment began. This meant that the dentist ensured people were fully informed prior to giving consent to the treatment and its costs.

People were extremely complimentary about the treatment they received. One person said: "The whole service is brilliant. The staff are very friendly and he, (the dentist) makes me feel relaxed. I used to be petrified of dentists before I came here”.

People told us that the practice was clean and that the dental staff wore protective equipment. The practice had appropriate systems in place to ensure that equipment and instruments were thoroughly cleaned, decontaminated and sterilised between treatments.

Staff received the training and support to provide people with the care they needed.

We found there were effective monitoring systems in place to ensure that people who used the service received safe quality care, treatment and support.