We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 18 February 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

Pickering House Dental Practice is a mixed dental practice providing private and NHS treatment for both adults and children. The practice is situated in a converted residential property. The practice had three dental treatment rooms and a separate decontamination room for cleaning, sterilising and packing dental instruments. Also included were a reception and waiting area.

The practice is open 9.00am - 5.00pm Monday to Friday and some Saturdays by appointment only. The practice has five dentists working part-time over the course of a week and are supported by three dental nurses, an apprentice dental nurse, a dental therapist, a dental hygienist and a practice manager. Other staff include a receptionist who supports the practice manager as an assistant practice manager and a cleaner.

The practice manager is the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission 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 comment cards to the practice for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the practice. We received feedback from 45 patients. These provided a completely positive view of the services the practice provides. Patients commented on the high quality of care, the caring nature of all staff, the cleanliness of the practice and the overall high quality of customer care.

Our key findings were:

• We found that the practice ethos was to provide patient centred dental care in a relaxed and friendly environment.
• Strong and effective leadership was provided by the principal dentist and an empowered practice manager.
• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment was readily available in accordance with current guidelines.
• The practice appeared very clean and well maintained.
• Infection control procedures were robust and the practice followed published guidance.
• The practice had a safeguarding lead with effective processes in place for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.
• Staff reported incidents and kept records of these which the practice used for shared learning.
• Dentists provided dental care in accordance with current professional and National Institute for Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
• The practice had fully embraced the concept of skill mix to assist in the delivery of effective dental care to patients.
• The service was aware of the needs of the local population and took these into account in how the practice was run.
• Patients could access treatment and urgent and emergency care when required.
• Staff recruitment files were organised and complete.
• Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and were supported in their continued professional development (CPD) by the practice principal and practice manager.
• Staff we spoke with felt well supported by the practice principal and practice manager and were committed to providing a quality service to their patients.
• Information from 45 completed Care Quality Commission (CQC) comment cards gave us a positive picture of a friendly, caring, professional and high quality service.