Archived: Mydentist - High Street - Horncastle Also known as mydentist

Updated 5 November 2015

The inspection took place on 28 May 2015. The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who had access to remote advice from a specialist advisor.

Prior to the inspection we asked the practice to send us some information which we reviewed. This included the complaints they had received in the last 12 months, their latest statement of purpose, the details of their staff members, their qualifications and proof of registration with their professional bodies.

We also reviewed the information we held about the practice and found there were no areas of concern. We also informed NHS England area team that we were inspecting the practice; however we did not receive any information of concern from them.

During the inspection we spoke with two dentists, the practice manager, two dental nurses one of whom also acted as the receptionist. We reviewed policies, procedures and other documents. We reviewed completed comment cards that had been supplied to the practice by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), 32 people provided feedback about the service.

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 5 November 2015

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 28 May 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

The practice is situated close to the centre of Horncastle in Lincolnshire and is part of the IDH dental group. It is located in the ground floor of a Mews house with wheelchair access and a disabled toilet.

The practice has three dentists, a practice manager, three dental nurses, a trainee dental nurse and a receptionist.

The practice provides primary dental services to both NHS and private patients. The practice is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9am – 5pm and on Tuesday and Thursday from 9am – 7pm

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.

We viewed 32 CQC comment cards that had been left for patients to complete, prior to our visit, about the services provided. All comment cards reflected positive comments about the staff and the services provided. Patients commented that the practice was clean, they found the staff very friendly and they found the quality of the dentistry to be excellent. They said explanations were clear and made the dental experience as comfortable as possible.

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

Our key findings were:

• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• 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

• Staff had received safeguarding and whistleblowing training and knew the processes to follow to raise any concerns.
• Infection control procedures were in place and the practice followed published guidance.
• Patient’s care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with evidence based guidelines, best practice and current legislation.
• Patients received clear explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained
• The practice was well-led and staff felt involved and worked as a team.

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

• Replace the flooring in both surgeries as it is worn with no coving at the skirting boards making it difficult to keep the area clean.