Burton Family Dental Centre

We carried out this announced inspection on 28 January 2020 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 Care Quality Commission (CQC), inspector who was supported by a specialist dental adviser and a CQC inspection manager.

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 this practice was providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found this practice was providing effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found this practice was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found this practice was providing responsive care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

We found this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

Burton Family Dental Centre is in Burton on Trent and provides NHS (for children only) and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is level access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including dedicated parking for people with disabilities, are available near the practice.

The dental team includes three dentists, five dental nurses, one dental hygienists, one receptionist and a business manager. The practice has three treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by a company and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the CQC 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 Burton Family Dental Centre is one of the principal dentists.

On the day of inspection, we collected 49 CQC comment cards filled in by patients.

During the inspection we spoke with two dentists, two dental nurses, one receptionist and the business manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday and Wednesday from 8.30am to 4.30pm.

Tuesday and Thursday from 9.30am to 5.30pm.

Friday from 8.30am to 4pm.

Our key findings were:

• Strong and effective leadership was provided by the principal dentists and empowered business manager. There was a strong culture of continuous improvement
• Staff told us that they felt valued and supported. All staff members we spoke with told us they enjoyed working at the practice and many had been there for over ten years.
• The practice appeared to be visibly clean and well-maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which mostly reflected published guidance. Infection prevention and control audits were completed annually rather than six monthly. An audit was completed within 48 hours of the inspection.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available, with the exception of the defibrillation pads which had expired. Self-inflating bags with reservoirs and clear face masks were missing from the kit. These were ordered on the day of our inspection.
• The provider had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff. We saw that risk assessments for substances hazardous to health had been completed however, the safety data sheets were not available to staff. We were informed that this would be rectified.
• The provider had safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider had staff recruitment procedures which reflected current legislation.
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff treated patients with dignity and respect and took care to protect their privacy and personal information.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health. They routinely referred patients to their dental hygienist and oral health educator through a clear care pathway.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs. Patients could access routine treatment and urgent care when required.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided. Feedback from patients received through online forms and 49 CQC comment cards was overwhelmingly positive.
• The principal dentists strove to continually improve the patient journey and service. An improvement plan was being developed to drive improvement. This included implementing a patient participation group; increasing patient communication and community outreach and focusing on the ease of patient communication.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had information governance arrangements.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements. They should:

• Improve the practice's processes for the control of substances hazardous to health identified by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, to ensure safety data sheets are retained alongside the completed risk assessments.