This was the first inspection of the practice since its registration with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in May 2011. We (the CQC) spoke with one patient, the dentist (the provider/owner) and two dental nurses. Another patient that we planned to speak with did not attend their appointment. However we were able to gain patient feedback from quality questionnaires. We also observed three patients during their treatment.

One patient described their experience of the practice as “very good” and said that in the case of an emergency the practice “got you straight in”. We observed three patients during their treatment and all were treated in a caring and professional manner. The provider gave an assurance that he would update emergency equipment as soon as possible.

All the staff we spoke with were aware of the signs of potential abuse and the action to take if they were concerned.

The provider may find it useful to note their lack of monitoring of the decontamination audit process. This meant that effectiveness of the audit, as a means to make improvement, was not fully realised.

The standard of record keeping had been externally audited in November 2012 and improvements made as a result.