We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 09 September 2015 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

Super White Dental Clinic is located in the London Borough of Lambeth. The premises consist of two treatment rooms and one dedicated decontamination room. There are also toilet facilities, waiting area, a reception area and an office.

The practice provides private dental services and treats both adults and children. The practice offers a range of dental services including routine examinations and treatment, veneers, crowns and bridges and oral hygiene.

The practice staffing consists of one principal dentist (who was also the manager and provider), one dental nurse and a receptionist.

The practice is open; Monday to Friday from 9:00am to 6:00pm. The practice books patients in on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday from 9:00am to 2:00pm for treatments.

The owner is the principal dentist, manager and the provider of the service.

The practice had a registered manager in place. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) 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 inspection took place over one day and was carried out by a CQC inspector and a dentist specialist advisor.

We received two CQC comment cards completed by patients. Patients had commented positively about the dentist and their experience of being treated at the practice.

Our key findings were:

• There was an effective system in place for reporting and learning from incidents.

• The practice had arrangements in place to deal with medical emergencies at the practice.

• There were effective systems in place to reduce and minimise the risk and spread of infection.

• The practice had effective safeguarding processes in place and staff understood their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.

• The principal dentist had a vision for the practice and staff told us they were well supported.

• Governance arrangements were in place for the running of the practice; however improvements needed to be made to have a structured plan in place to assess various risks arising from undertaking the regulated activities and to effectively audit quality and safety.

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

• Review the practice’s arrangements for receiving and responding to patient safety alerts, recalls and rapid response reports issued from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and through the Central Alerting System (CAS), as well as from other relevant bodies, such as Public Health England (PHE).
• Review the practice's policy and the storage of products identified under Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH), 2002 Regulations to ensure they are stored securely .
• Review the practice's protocols for completion of dental care records giving due regard to guidance provided by the Faculty of General Dental Practice regarding clinical examinations and record keeping.