We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 5 January 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

Prime Dental Care is located in Maltby, Rotherham. The practice offers NHS dental treatment and private treatments. There are four treatment rooms, two of which are on the ground floor, two decontamination rooms (one on each floor), a reception and waiting area, an office, a separate staff room and a ground floor toilet for patients.

There are four dentists (one is a foundation training dentist) a dental hygiene therapist, six dental nurses, two trainee dental nurses, a practice manager and a practice cleaner.

There is access into the practice to assist patients with impaired mobility. Parking is available to the rear of the premises and on local side roads...

The practice is open between 9:30am and 6:00pm Monday to Friday; closing times vary throughout the week.

The principal dentist is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as an individual registered person. 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

On the day of inspection we received 31 CQC comment cards providing feedback. Patients who provided feedback were very positive about the care and attention to treatment they received at the practice. Comments included that patients felt they were involved in all aspects of their care and found the staff to be very pleasant and helpful, the practice had a happy environment; staff were friendly and communicated well. Patients commented they could access emergency care easily and they were treated with dignity and respect in a clean and tidy environment.

Our key findings were:

• The practice had systems in place to assess and manage risks to patients and staff including infection prevention and control, health and safety and the management of medical emergencies.
• The practice was visibly clean and tidy.
• Staff had received safeguarding training, knew how to recognise signs of abuse and how to report it. They had systems in place to work closely and share information with the local safeguarding team.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Infection control procedures were in accordance with the published guidelines.
• Oral health advice and treatment were provided in line with the ‘Delivering Better Oral Health’ toolkit (DBOH).
• Treatment was well planned and provided in line with current guidelines.
• Patients received clear explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs.
• The practice was well-led and staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The governance systems were effective and embedded.
• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients about the services they provided.
• There were clearly defined leadership roles within the practice.

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

• Review the practice’s process for monitoring and recording the temperature of the medicines fridge.
• Review the practice’s process of logging checks on the ultrasonic bath in accordance with Health Technical Memorandum 01-05, ensuring that the water temperature does not exceed 40°C.
• Review the practice’s process to ensure the autoclave data logger is downloaded and analysed daily.

People's needs were assessed and treatment was planned and delivered in line with their individual treatment plan. The five people we spoke with who used the service commented positively about the care and treatment they had received. They told us it was easy to make an appointment and their treatments were clearly explained. One person said, “Best dentist I’ve ever had.”

We saw people were protected from the risk of infection because appropriate guidance was available and had been followed. People we spoke with told us the practice was always very clean and staff always wore protective clothing when treating them. We also saw staff had received training in this subject.

Staff received appropriate professional development. We saw staff had accessed various training so they could meet people’s needs and maintain their qualifications.

There were systems in place to gain people’s views about their satisfaction with the service provided and check if staff had followed company policies. People told us although they had never raised any concerns they would feel confident doing so. One person commented, “They are very professional and treat you like an equal.”