Portland House Dental Practice

We carried out this announced focussed inspection on 18 October 2021 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.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we asked the following three questions:

• Is it safe?

• Is it effective?

• 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 well-led?

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

Background

Portland House Dental Practice is in Withernsea and provides NHS 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 are available near the practice.

The dental team includes one dentist, three dental nurses, two dental hygiene therapists and a practice manager. The practice has two treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by an individual who is the principal dentist there. They have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run.

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

The practice is open:

Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared to be visibly clean and well-maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate emergency medicines were available. On the day of inspection not all emergency equipment was available. These were ordered after the inspection.
• The provider had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• 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. Improvements could be made to the process for obtaining Disclosure and Barring Service checks.
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
• The provider had effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked as a team.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The provider had information governance arrangements.

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

• Implement an effective recruitment procedure to ensure that appropriate checks are completed prior to new staff commencing employment at the practice.
• Take action to implement any recommendations in the practice's fire safety risk assessment and ensure ongoing fire safety management is effective.
• Take action to ensure the availability of equipment in the practice to manage medical emergencies taking into account the guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK).