We carried out this announced inspection on 04 March 2019 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 Care Quality Commission (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

LDN Dental is in King’s Cross in the London borough of Islington. The practice provides private treatment to people of all ages.

The dental team includes a practice manager, an assistant practice manager who also undertakes receptionist duties, a principal dentist, an associate dentist, three trainee dental nurses, a qualified dental nurse, and three receptionists. At the time of the inspection the principal dentist did not provide treatment to patients at this practice.

The practice has two treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by an organisation, 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 LDN Dental at the time of the inspection was the practice manager.

On the day of this inspection, we obtained feedback from four patients.

During the inspection we spoke with the practice manager, the assistant practice manager, a practice manager from one of the provider’s sister practices, the associate dentist, a trainee dental nurse and the qualified dental nurse.

We checked practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open from 9am to 5pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

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.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risks to patients and staff.
• The provider had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider 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.
• Staff were providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had suitable information governance arrangements.
• The provider had effective leadership and culture of continuous improvement.

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

• Review the practice’s protocols for referral of patients to ensure all referral outcomes are monitored suitably.