We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 5 September 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.

St Peters Lodge Dental Practice is a predominantly private practice in St Albans, Hertfordshire with a small NHS contract for children. The practice offers a range of general dental treatment, some orthodontics and implants. The premises are located on the ground floor and consist of three dental treatment rooms and a large reception and waiting area.

The staff at the practice consist of two principal dentists, an associate dentist, a business manager, a dental nurse and a dental receptionist. The practice has recently recruited a dental hygienist who had not commenced employment at the time of our inspection.

One of the principal dentists 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.

Our key findings were:

• There was an induction programme for staff to follow which ensured they were skilled and competent in delivering safe and effective care and support to patients.

• The practice ensured staff maintained the necessary skills and competence to support the needs of patients.

• There were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. We found the treatment rooms and equipment were visibly clean.

• There were systems in place to check equipment had been serviced regularly, including the dental air compressor, autoclaves, fire extinguishers and the X-ray equipment.

• We found the dentists regularly assessed each patient’s gum health and the dentist took X-rays at appropriate intervals.

• The practice kept up to date with current guidelines when considering the care and treatment needs of patients.

• The practice placed an emphasis on the promotion of oral and general health and the prevention of dental disease. Appropriate information and advice was available according to patients’ individual needs.

• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were readily available.

• Patients received comprehensive assessments of their oral health needs. They were given clear explanations about their proposed treatment, and its 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 the needs of patients and waiting times were kept to a minimum.

• There was an effective complaints system and the practice was open and transparent with patients if a mistake had been made.

• Staff demonstrated knowledge of the practice whistleblowing policy and were confident they would raise a concern about another staff member’s performance if it was necessary.

• At our visit we observed staff were kind, caring, very welcoming and worked well as a team.

• There was an effective system in place to act on feedback received from patients and staff.
• We reviewed 6 Care Quality Commission (CQC) comment cards that had been completed by patients prior to our inspection. Common themes were patients felt they received excellent care from staff who were kind, gentle and caring.  

We visited St.Peter's Lodge Dental Practice on 16 July 2013. We found the practice to be clean and well presented, with reception staff available to assist people when they arrived. We were told that people who used the service had been with the practice for many years and that the practice cared for all types of people from young children to the elderly. We saw that the reception area was easy to access and that the practice had allocated a corner for children to play in. It also supplied fun posters aimed at younger children, to educate them on oral hygiene. Staff told us that the practice was a 'nice place to work' and that alot of the staff had been with the practice for many years.