We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 7 January 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

Mydentist Hednesford is a mixed dental practice providing mainly NHS and some private treatment for both adults and children. The practice is situated in a converted domestic property. The practice had three dental treatment rooms and a separate decontamination room for cleaning, sterilising and packing dental instruments. Dental care was provided on two floors there was a reception and waiting area on the ground floor.

The practice is open 9:30am to 5:00pm Monday to Wednesday, Thursday 9:30am to 6:00pm, and Friday 9:30am to 4:00pm. The practice has three dentists who are supported by seven dental nurses and a receptionist. The practice also has a dental hygienist who works one day per month.

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

Before the inspection we sent Care Quality Commission (CQC) comment cards to the practice for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the practice. We received feedback from 31 patients. These provided a completely positive view of the services the practice provides. All of the patients commented that the quality of care was very good.

Our key findings were:

• The practice ethos was to provide patient centred care.
• The practice benefitted from a stable staff base and an empowered practice manager who was supported by a lead dental nurse and lead dentist. These individuals provided robust leadership within the practice.
• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment was readily available in accordance with current guidelines.
• The practice was visibly clean and well maintained.
• Infection control procedures were robust and the practice followed published guidance.
• The practice had a dedicated safeguarding lead with effective safeguarding processes in place for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.
• The service was aware of the needs of the local population and took those these into account in how the practice was run.
• Patients could access treatment and urgent and emergency care when required.
• Staff reported incidents and kept records of these which the practice used for shared learning.
• The practice had enough staff to deliver the service.
• Staff recruitment files were well organised and complete.
• Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and were supported in their continued professional development (CPD).
• Staff we spoke to felt well supported by the practice manager and were committed to providing a quality service to their patients.
• Information from 31 completed Care Quality Commission (CQC) comment cards gave us a completely positive picture of a friendly, professional service.
• The practice received no complaints in 2015. The last complaint was received in 2013.

The practice had a rolling programme of clinical and non-clinical audit in place.

We arranged our visit over the telephone a few days before we arrived. This was done to ensure that relevant staff were available to talk to us.

We visited the service on 16 May 2012. We met with the practice manager and the area manager for ADP Dental Care. We spoke with two of the dentists and a dental nurse during our visit. We were introduced to other staff on duty. Staff were heard informing people that we were visiting and telling them that they could speak to us if they wished.

As part of the review process we spoke with four people over the telephone before we visited and four people who were at the dental centre on the day of our visit. We asked people about their experiences of using the dental service. Seven out of the eight people spoken with were extremely happy with the service received and one person was unhappy with an aspect of a recent treatment and was due to go back to the practice and discuss this with them.

People were asked if staff were friendly and welcoming, if they were given sufficient information about any treatment on offer and whether any treatment options and costs were explained.

People told us "everyone is lovely." "I have been at this practice for over 10 years and the staff are great." "I would recommend this practice to anyone."

We were told that the reception area had recently been refurbished which was an improvement. People commented on the new flooring and seating arrangements in the reception and waiting area saying how much they liked them. Everyone said that the surgery is always clean, a few people said it is "spotless."

We asked people if they were given enough information about the treatment options available to them. One person told us that the dentist "sits you up and makes sure you are comfortable and then explains everything to you." Another person said that they take you into a side room and discuss treatment options with you. Everyone said that they had enough information to be able to make the best choice for them regarding treatment. People said that they always knew how much any treatment was going to cost. We saw a large poster on display in the waiting area detailing NHS costs.

Everyone spoken with said that they could get an appointment when they needed one. Two people spoken with on the day of our inspection were there for an emergency appointment and were grateful that they could be seen on the day that they had telephoned. A dentist spoken with said that they always try to see anyone who telephones complaining of pain on the day of their call. People told us that they did not have to wait to see the dentist. One person said "I usually arrive early and am seen before my appointment time." Everyone spoken with thought that a five minute wait was acceptable and all said that they don't usually have to wait longer than that.