Northwood Dental Practice

We carried out this announced comprehensive inspection on 8 September 2023 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 practice 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 advisor.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following 5 questions:

• Is it safe?
• Is it effective?
• Is it caring?
• Is it responsive to people’s needs?
• Is it well-led?

These questions form the framework for the areas we look at during the inspection.

Our findings were:

• The dental clinic appeared clean and well-maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• The practice had staff recruitment procedures which reflected current legislation.
• Clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect. Staff took care to protect patients’ privacy and personal information.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system worked efficiently to respond to patients’ needs.
• The frequency of appointments was agreed between the dentist and the patient, giving due regard to National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
• There was effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved, supported and worked as a team.
• Staff and patients were asked for feedback about the services provided.
• Complaints were dealt with positively and efficiently.
• The practice had information governance arrangements.
• The practice ensured that equipment was safe to use. Improvements were needed to the systems in place to manage risks for patients, staff and the premises.
• Safeguarding processes were in place and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children. Improvements were needed to ensure staff received safeguarding training at a suitable level to their role and that training was updated at appropriate intervals.
• Staff knew how to deal with medical emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were not available.
• Improvements were needed to ensure required staff training was monitored and completed.

Background

Northwood Dental Practice is in Northwood, in the London Borough of Hillingdon and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is step free access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces are available near the practice. The practice has made reasonable adjustments to support patients with access requirements.

The dental team includes the principal dentist, 2 associate dentists, 1 dental nurse, 3 trainee dental nurses, 1 dental hygienist, 1 practice manager and 1 receptionist. The practice has 2 treatment rooms.

During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist, 1 associate dentist, the qualified dental nurse, 1 trainee dental nurse, the dental hygienist and the practice manager. We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday to Friday from 8.30am to 5.30pm.

Saturdays by appointment only.

We identified regulations the provider was/is not complying with. They must:

• Ensure care and treatment is provided in a safe way to patients.
• Establish effective systems and processes to ensure good governance in accordance with the fundamental standards of care.

Full details of the regulations the provider was not meeting are at the end of this report.

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

• Implement audits for prescribing of antibiotic medicines taking into account the guidance provided by the College of General Dentistry.