We carried out this announced inspection on 12 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

Granville Dental Practice is in Leicester City and provides NHS and private treatment to adults and children. At the time of our inspection, the practice was accepting new NHS patient registrations.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs, with use of a portable ramp. There is some limited car parking spaces at the front of the premises. Public car parking is also available close to the practice.

The dental team includes six dentists, seven dental nurses, one dental hygienist and three receptionists. A practice manager is also employed. The practice has five treatment rooms; two of which are on the ground floor. The practice has plans to refurbish one of the clinical 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 Granville Dental Practice is the practice manager.

On the day of inspection we collected 40 CQC comment cards filled in by patients.

During the inspection we spoke with three dentists, two dental nurses, two receptionists, the practice manager and the compliance facilitator who worked for the provider. We looked at practice policies and procedures, patient feedback and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open: Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 8am to 5.30pm, Tuesday and Thursday from 8am to 8pm.

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 available.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk.
• The practice staff 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 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 dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The practice staff had suitable information governance arrangements.

We did not speak with people using the service during this inspection, because we were reviewing improvements that people using the service would not easily have been able to comment on. We saw that the improvements the registered person had made in relation to infection control were reducing the risk of infection to people using the service.

People we spoke with told us they were very happy with the care and treatment they received. One said, “I’ve been coming here 63 years. I’ve got no complaints at all – a wonderful surgery.”