We carried out this announced inspection on 11 December 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

Euston Place Dental Practice is in Royal Leamington Spa and provides predominantly private treatment with a small NHS provision to adults and children. The services are provided by six individually Care Quality Commission registered providers at this location. This report only relates to the provision of general dental care and specialist services provided by MacVander Ltd. Additional reports are available in respect of the general dental care and specialist services which are registered under the following providers; Dr Manvinder Thandi, Mr Charles Buckle, Mr Paul Mulligan, Dr Douglas George Watt and Westvere Limited.

There is a large ramp at the rear of the building to provide access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including some for blue badge holders, are available in pay and display car parks near to the practice.

The dental team includes six dentists, ten dental nurses, one trainee dental nurse, one dental hygienist, three dental hygiene therapists, four receptionists, two administrators and one practice manager. The practice has eight treatment rooms.

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 Euston Place Dntal Practice is one of the four principal dentists there.

On the day of inspection, we collected 68 CQC comment cards filled in by patients.

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

The practice is open:

Monday to Thursday: from 8.15am to 5pm

Friday: from 8am to 2pm

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available with the exception of face masks for the self-inflating bags. These were ordered within 48 hours of our visit.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• The provider had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children. Safeguarding contact details and flow charts were displayed in the staff kitchen.
• The provider 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.
• Staff were providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health. They routinely referred patients to their dental hygienist and hygiene therapists through a clear care pathway.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs. Patients could access routine treatment and urgent care when required.
• The provider had effective leadership and culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided. Information from 68 completed Care Quality Commission (CQC) comment cards gave us a positive picture of a gentle, friendly and high-quality service.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had suitable information governance arrangements.

Our inspection of this dental practice was discussed and arranged a short time in advance. This was to ensure that we had time to see and speak with staff working at the practice, as well as people registered with the service.

People told us that they had been fully involved with the staff about the treatments available to them and the costs involved. Consent was sought before any treatment and information was provided to people about treatment options. One person told us, “There are three words to describe my treatment here. Respect, friendliness and efficiency.”

People we spoke with told us they were happy with the service and would recommend the practice to family and friends. One person said, “I have introduced a lot of people to my dentist and they all think it is a wonderful service and thank me for recommending them to the practice.”

People we spoke with said everything always looked clean and they were satisfied with the standards of cleanliness. We saw there were good standards of hygiene and infection control in place.

Staff members spoken with told us that they felt they were supported by the dentist. We found that staff completed appropriate training to ensure their knowledge and skills were up to date.

All of the people we spoke with said that they knew they could speak to a member of staff if they had a complaint. One person said "I haven’t had to complain but I would tell them if I wasn’t happy.”