Archived: Clock House Dental

Another person spoken with said they were always reminded when their next appointment was due either by text or letter, depending on their choice. They were also aware of the system for emergency appointments.

One person said they they were given a different dentist at their appointments. Discussion took place with a member of staff and they said, although there had been some changes with Dentists in the practice there would be more attention to continuity where possible.

People's needs were assessed and treatment was planned in line with their individual care plan. We saw staff were very friendly and polite, putting people at their ease. Dentists described how they carried out an examination and treatment plan for each patient. We saw there was on-going training and support for staff to help keep them up-to-date with best practice.

The practice was clean and well maintained with good procedures in place to prevent cross infection. People we spoke with were complimentary about the environment and how clean the surgery always was.

We observed several patient journeys through the practice. This followed the patients from their arrival at reception to the treatment room and back to reception. People's personal records including medical records were accurate and fit for purpose. We saw evidence of a regular card audit to check that the right information was being recorded. Good professionalism and communication was evidenced between all staff and patients.

We observed the practice was clean and well maintained and this was confirmed by the patients we interviewed. The practice manager showed us the the decontamination cycle. The provider was meeting essential requirements of HTM01-05 and had plans in place to meet best practice. We spoke with ten members of staff who confirmed that they had their learning needs identified and that there was enough training provided for them.

We saw records which showed the practice to be compliant with current legislation.

We spoke to reception staff, dentists and dental nurses who were working during our visit. We also spoke with the practice managers and carried out a tour of the dental surgery. We found that some of the dental practice rooms and equipment were dirty. We found dirty instruments and saw records relating to cleanliness and infection control which had either been falsely completed or had not been completed.

People who used this service were being placed at risk of harm due to poor standards regarding hygiene and the control of infection.