We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 30 March 2016 to ask the practice the following key questions; Are services safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led?

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

Ilkley Dental Care is situated in Ilkley town centre, West Yorkshire. It offers predominantly private dental treatment to patients of all ages but also has a small NHS contract for children and adults who are exempt from NHS dental charges. The services include preventative advice and treatment and routine restorative dental care.

The practice has four surgeries, a decontamination room, one waiting area and a reception area. The reception area, waiting area and one surgery are on the ground floor. One surgery is in the basement and the other two surgeries are on the first floor. The second floor of the premises is reserved for staff only.

There are five dentists, three dental hygiene therapists, seven dental nurses (including a trainee), four receptionists and a practice manager.

The opening hours are Monday to Friday from 8-30am to 5-30pm and Saturday from 8-30am to 12-30pm.

The principal dentist is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as an individual. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the practice is run.

During the inspection we spoke with eight patients who used the service and reviewed 110 completed CQC comment cards. The patients were positive about the care and treatment they received at the practice. Comments included that the staff were friendly, efficient, professional and obliging and that the practice was immaculately clean and that treatment options were well explained.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and tidy.
• The practice had systems in place to assess and manage risks to patients and staff including infection prevention, control and health and safety and the management of medical emergencies.
• Staff received training appropriate to their roles.
• Dental care records were detailed and showed that treatment was planned in line with current best practice guidelines.
• Patients were involved in making decisions about their treatment and were given clear explanations about their proposed treatment including costs, benefits and risks.
• Oral health advice and treatment were provided in-line with the ‘Delivering Better Oral Health’ toolkit (DBOH).
• We observed that patients were treated with kindness and respect by staff. Staff ensured there was sufficient time to explain fully the care and treatment they were providing in a way patients understood.
• Patients were able to make routine and emergency appointments when needed.
• The practice actively used social media to engage with its patients.
• The practice had a complaints system in place and there was an openness and transparency in how these were dealt with.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements and should:

• Aim to complete the IPS audit in the digital form so that an action plan is formulated.
• Aim to document the automatic control test for the autoclaves.
• Aim to bag all reusable dental burs.
• Aim to record when the emergency drugs and the automated external defibrillator are checked.

People told us staff explained all the procedures and treatments to them and respected their decisions about their treatment and care. One person said, "they fully explain everything to me.”

People who used the service told us they were happy with the care and treatment they received at the practice. One person who used the service told us "I only called today and they managed to fit me in.”

We asked two people who used the service if they felt safe at the service. People said "yes" and one person added “I can not fault them. I have the same dentist and I am very much involved at every stage of my treatment.”

We found people received care and treatment in a clean environment with infection control measures in place to minimise the risk of infection. People we spoke with told us the service was always clean and tidy. One person told us the surgery was “spotless.”

The provider had an appropriate system in place for gathering, recording and evaluating information about the quality and safety of care the service provided. People who used the service and their representatives were asked for their views about their care and treatment.