We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 05 January 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.

Background

Village Dental Care is a dental practice providing mainly NHS and some private treatment for both adults and children. The practice is situated in a converted commercial property. The practice provides services on the first floor of the property which is accessed by a lift. The practice has six dental treatment rooms and a separate decontamination room for cleaning, sterilising and packing dental instruments.

The practice is open between 9:00am and 5:30pm from Monday to Thursday and 8:00am and 4:30pm on Friday. Appointments can also be made until 8:00pm on Wednesday and 9:00am to 4:00pm on Saturday.

The practice has ten dentists and four dental hygiene/therapists who work a variety of hours and are supported by nine dental nurses, three of whom are in training. There are two reception staff, a practice co-ordinator and practice manager.

The Practice Manager 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. The practice manager is supported by a practice co-ordinator.

Before the inspection we sent Care Quality Commission comment cards to the practice for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the practice. We collected 18 completed cards and obtained the views of a further 17 patients on the day of our visit. These provided a positive view of the services the practice provides. All of the patients commented the quality of care was very good and said they would recommend Village Dental Care to someone who had moved to the area.

Our key findings were:

• The practice owner and practice manager were proud of the practice and their team. Staff felt well supported and were committed to providing a quality service to their patients.
• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment was readily available in accordance with current guidelines.
• The practice was visibly clean and well maintained.
• Infection control procedures were robust and the practice followed published guidance.
• Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned and delivered in line with current professional guidelines
• The practice had effective safeguarding processes in place and staff understood their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.
• Staff reported incidents and kept records of these which the practice used for shared learning.
• The practice had enough staff to deliver the service.
• The practice placed an emphasis on the promotion of good oral health and provided regular oral health instruction to patients.
• Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and were supported in their continuing professional development.
• Information from 18 completed CQC comment cards and a further 17 patients on the day of our visit gave us a positive picture of a friendly, professional service.
• The practice took into account any comments, concerns or complaints and used these to help them improve the practice.
• All complaints were dealt with in an open and transparent way by the practice manager if a mistake had been made.

People were involved in making decisions about their care and consent was sought for any treatment. One young person told us: “My mum would sign and give verbal consent.” This showed people were able to give valid consent to the examination, care, treatment and support they received.

One person told us: “One of the reasons for coming here, is I feel involved in the decision making of my treatment.”

People told us they would talk to the manager if they had any concerns about the way they were treated. We viewed safeguarding children and adults policies. Staff had signed to confirm they had read and understood them.

People told us they had no concern about cleanliness. One person told us they found the practice to be: “Spotless, I am very impressed.” We observed staff cleaning equipment was in accordance with the infection control and cross contamination policy. There was a system in place to help reduce the risk and spread of infection.

The service sought the views of people and those acting on their behalf, and made changes as a result of feedback received. We viewed the patient satisfaction audit dated July 2012 which showed 100% of people were satisfied with the treatment discussed.