We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 9 February 2017 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

Maple Road Dental Practice is a dental practice providing NHS and private treatment for both adults and children. The practice provides general dentistry as well as specialised treatments such as sedation and implants. The practice is based in a two storey premises which is fully accessible to patients with disabilities.

There are five dental treatment rooms, a decontamination room, reception and waiting area with additional seating upstairs and staff rooms.

The practice employs six dentists, five dental therapists, nine dental nurses, a clinical manager and a business manager.

The practice’s opening hours are 9am to 7pm Monday, 8.30am to 5.30pm Tuesday, 9am to 5.30pm Wednesday, 9am to 7pm Thursday and 9am to 5pm Friday. In addition, the practice is open from 9am to 12pm on Saturdays for private patients only.

The practice was a member of a ‘good practice’ accreditation scheme. This is a quality assurance scheme that demonstrates a visible commitment to providing quality dental care to nationally recognised standards.

The practice owner who is also the principal dentist is the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service.

Our key findings were:

• The premises were visibly clean and tidy.
• The practice had procedures in place to record and analyse significant events and incidents.
• Staff had received safeguarding training, and knew the process to follow to raise concerns.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified, skilled staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Staff had been trained to deal with medical emergencies, and emergency medicines and equipment were available but some minor adjustments were necessary to comply with Resuscitation Council UK guidelines.
• Patients’ needs were assessed, and care and treatment were delivered, in accordance with current legislation, standards, and guidance.
• Patients received information about their care, proposed treatment, costs, benefits, and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Staff were supported to deliver effective care, and opportunities for training and learning were available.
• Patients were treated with kindness, dignity, and respect.
• The appointment system met the needs of patients, and emergency appointments were available.
• Services were planned and delivered to meet the needs of patients, and reasonable adjustments were made to enable patients to receive their care and treatment.
• The practice gathered the views of patients and took their views into account.
• Staff were supervised, felt involved, and worked as a team.
• Governance arrangements were in place for the smooth running of the practice, and for the delivery of high quality person centred care.

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

• Review availability of medicines and equipment to manage medical emergencies giving due regard to guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK), the British National Formulary, and the General Dental Council (GDC) standards for the dental team.

During the time we spent at the surgery we spoke to a number of people about the service. We spoke with patients either before or after their treatment, the registered manager, the practice manager and members of staff. This was in order to gain a balanced overview of what patients experienced using this dental practice.

Patients spoke highly of the way they were treated by staff and were happy with the care and support shown to them during the course of their treatment. Comments from patients included, "It's a very friendly practice. The staff have been really good. They are brilliant, really put me at ease."

Patients we spoke with felt they were given enough information about treatment options. They were kept informed about how their treatment was progressing throughout the process. One patient said, "The service has been absolutely fabulous. What stands out is how they explain everything. They showed me using a computer programme what was happening with my tooth. They put things in simple terms, and that put me at ease."

Care and treatment was planned and delivered in a way that ensured patient's safety and welfare. We looked at four patient records that included private and NHS patients. We spoke with the treatment co-ordinator regarding the assessment of patients and looked at documents used.