We carried out this announced inspection on 16 August 2017 under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. We planned the inspection to check whether the registered provider was meeting the legal requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations. The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who was supported by a specialist dental adviser.

We told the NHS England area team and Healthwatch that we were inspecting the practice. They did not have any relevant information to share with us regarding this dental practice.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following five questions:

• Is it safe?

• Is it effective?

• Is it caring?

• Is it responsive to people’s needs?

• Is it well-led?

These questions form the framework for the areas we look at during the inspection.

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

Sneinton Family Dental Centre is located in premises in the Sneinton area of Nottingham and provides mostly NHS dental treatment (95%) to patients of all ages.

The practice is located in ground floor premises with roadside car parking in the local area.

The dental team includes one dentist; one qualified dental nurse and one receptionist.

The practice is owned by an organisation and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the Care Quality Commission as the registered manager. Registered managers 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 registered manager at Sneinton Family Dental Centre is one of the owners of the practice.

On the day of inspection we collected 20 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with three other patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

During the inspection we spoke with one dentist, one dental nurse and a senior manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open: Monday to Wednesday: 9 am to 6 pm. The practice is closed between 1 pm and 2 pm for lunch.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which followed published guidance.
• Patients provided positive feedback about the service and the staff.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
• Dentists said they used rubber dam when completing root canal treatment in-line with the guidance issued by the British Endodontic Society.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risks in the practice, particularly with regard to health and safety.
• The practice had suitable safeguarding processes. Staff had been trained and knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.
• The practice had thorough staff recruitment procedures.
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff treated patients with dignity and respect and took measures to protect their privacy and personal information.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs. Patients said they could get an appointment that suited them.
• The practice had effective leadership. Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The practice asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The practice dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.

As part of our inspection we spoke with staff, patients and looked at records. Overall we observed that patients were supported by skilled and experienced staff who understood their roles and responsibilities.

We saw patients were treated with dignity and respect. There were systems in place which enabled people to express their views' about the services and care they received. We saw evidence of changes in the practice as a result. For example the introduction of text messaging to remind patients about their appointments'.

We observed patients received information about their treatment and appropriate consent was obtained before treatment commenced.

We saw patients were cared for in a clean environment and protected against the risk of infection.

We observed where patients were not happy arrangements were in place to take their concerns into account.

We spoke with a patient who told us they were very happy with the service. They said, “Couldn’t ask for a better place” and always friendly

They said they had no problems booking an appointment.