EvoDental Liverpool Clinic

Updated 2 July 2015

This announced inspection was carried out on the 14 May 2015. The inspection team consisted of a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspector and a dental specialist advisor.

Prior to the inspection we reviewed information we held about the provider.

During the inspection we toured the premises and spoke with two of the dentists, two dental nurses, the decontamination technician, three laboratory technicians, the administrator and the practice manager. To assess the quality of care provided we looked at practice policies and protocols and other records relating to the management of the service.

We also reviewed information we asked the provider to send us in advance of the inspection. This included their latest statement of purpose describing their values and their objectives and a record of any complaints received in the last 12 months.

We obtained the views of three patients who had filled in CQC comment cards and spoke with one patient and a relative of two patients on the day of our inspection.

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 therefore formed the framework for the areas we looked at during the inspection.

Updated 2 July 2015

We carried out a comprehensive inspection of EvoDental Surgery1-North West on 14 May 2015.

EvoDental Surgery1-North West is situated near Huyton in Merseyside. It provides private dental implant services.

The practice has three dentists, two of whom are part time; two dental nurses, a decontamination technician, an administrator and a practice manager. The practice has five dental technicians working in its on-site implant laboratory.

The principal dentist is the clinical director and provider of the service. The practice manager is the registered manager for the practice. 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 service is supported by a visiting clinical director for research and development. Dental implant procedures are mainly carried out under local anaesthetic; however conscious intravenous (IV) sedation is available for nervous patients. A consultant anaesthetist from outside the practice provides specialist support to carry out conscious IV sedation.

The practice is open Monday to Friday from 9-00am to 7-00pm.

We spoke with one patient and the relative of two patients who used the service on the day of our inspection and reviewed three completed CQC comment cards. Patients we spoke with and who completed comment cards were positive about the care they received from the practice. They commented staff were caring, helpful and respectful and that they had confidence in the dental services provided.

We found that this practice was providing safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Our key findings were:

• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were readily available. Infection control procedures were in place and the practice followed published guidance.

• The practice carried out oral health assessments and planned treatment in line with current best practice guidance, for example from the Faculty of General Dental Practice (FGDP).

• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained. Patients commented they felt involved in their treatment and that it was fully explained to them.

• The practice provided patients with information about the services they offered on their website and in the information pack given to patients at the initial consultation.
• Governance systems were effective and there was a range of clinical and non-clinical audits to monitor the quality of the service.