19 June 2012
During a routine inspection
We met with two dental nurses and Mr Dean, the dentist who was also the registered owner. The practice manager was not available on the day of our inspection visit.
As part of the review process we spoke with five people over the telephone after our visit and two people who were at the dental practice on the day of our visit. We asked people about their experiences of using the dental service. People were asked if staff were friendly and welcoming, if they were given sufficient information about any treatment on offer and whether any treatment options and costs were explained. People commented, "They tell you about the different NHS pay bands and which pay band your treatment falls into." "They always tell you how to look after your teeth and whether you need to pay any special attention to anything." "They (staff) are very pleasant and make you feel comfortable."
We saw a marine fish tank in the waiting area which housed brightly coloured fish. One person we spoke with told us that looking at the fish helped them feel at ease. Another person commented on how nice the fish tank was.
People spoken with said that the staff were friendly and helpful. We could see that the person working on reception had a good relationship with people that visited the dental surgery and people were treated with dignity and respect.
Everyone spoken with said that they could get an appointment when they needed one and said that they did not wait past their appointment time to see the dentist. One person told us how pleased they were with some emergency treatment they had received.
We saw that some systems and practices had been put in place regarding infection control and sterilisation of dental equipment. Checks to ensure equipment was in good working order to ensure correct sterilisation were not all up to date or available as they should have been.
Staff appeared knowledgeable and competent and had undertaken relevant training, although some updates were required.
Quality assurance systems were in place but did not always identify areas of improvement that could affect the quality of the service provided. This included audits to demonstrate that equipment was in good working order, audits to ensure staff training was up to date and cleaning records to demonstrate that appropriate cleaning takes place on a regular basis.