We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 14 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

Retford Primary Care Centre is located in ground floor premises situated in the hospital in the market town of Retford. There is one treatment room. The service only provides NHS dental treatments. There is free car parking for dental patients on the hospital site.

The service provides regulated dental services to both adults and children. Services provided include general dentistry and dental hygiene. This is usually for patients with special needs, such as being very nervous who where there are access issues.

The service was only open on a Tuesday. The opening hours are – Tuesday: 9 am to 4 pm.

The service operates on a referral only basis. Referrals were for NHS treatment and were accepted from any NHS professional such as a GP, District Nurse or Health Visitor.

The practice manager was registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as 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.

The service is registered with the CQC as an organisation.

The service has one dentist; two qualified dental nurses; and one practice manager.

Before the inspection we sent CQC comments cards to the service for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the service and during the inspection we spoke with patients. We received responses from five patients through both comment cards and by speaking with them during the inspection. Those patients provided positive feedback about the services provided.

Our key findings were:

• The premises were visibly clean and there were systems and processes in place to maintain the cleanliness.
• The systems to record accidents, significant events and complaints, learning points from these were recorded and used to make improvements.
• Records showed there were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• There were effective systems at the service related to the Control of Substance Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002.
• The service had a robust consent policy including reference to the Mental Capacity Act 2005.
• Patients said they had no problem getting an appointment that suited their needs.
• Patients provided positive feedback about their experiences at the service. Patients said they were treated with dignity and respect.
• Dental care records demonstrated that the dentists involved patients in discussions about treatment options.
• Patients’ confidentiality was protected within the service.
• The service followed the relevant guidance from the Department of Health's: ‘Health Technical Memorandum 01-05 (HTM 01-05) for infection control with regard to cleaning and sterilizing dental instruments.
• There was a whistleblowing policy accessible to all staff, who were aware of procedures to follow if they had any concerns about a colleague’s practice.
• The service had the necessary equipment for staff to deal with medical emergencies, and staff had been trained how to use that equipment. This included an automated external defibrillator, oxygen and emergency medicines.