Prince George Dental Practice

We carried out this announced inspection on 28 June 2019 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 provider was meeting the legal requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations. The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who was supported by a specialist dental adviser.

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

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

Prince George Dental Practice is in Havant and provides private treatment to adults and children.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including those for blue badge holders, are available near the practice.

The dental team includes one dentist, three dental nurses, two dental hygienists and one practice manger/dental nurse. The practice has two treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by an individual who is the principal dentist there. They have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run.

On the day of inspection, we collected nine CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with three other patients.

During the inspection we spoke with one dentist, two dental nurses, one dental hygienist and the practice manager/dental nurse. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday to Friday 8am to 5pm

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance, although improvements could be made to the location and layout of the decontamination facility.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were mostly available.
• The provider had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff, however improvement could be made by introducing an additional risk assessment for lone working.
• The provider had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider had thorough staff recruitment procedures.
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff treated patients with dignity and respect and took care to protect their privacy and personal information.
• Improvements could be made to Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 file to ensure the safe storage and use of materials used.
• Improvements could be made to the auditing process.
• Staff provided preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
• The provider had effective leadership and culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had suitable information governance arrangements.

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

• Review the practice's policy for the control and storage of substances hazardous to health identified by the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, to ensure risk assessments are undertaken and the products are stored securely.

• Review the practice's protocols for monitoring and recording the fridge temperature to ensure that medicines and dental care products are being stored in line with the manufacturer’s guidance.

• Review the availability of equipment in the practice to manage medical emergencies taking into account the guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the General Dental Council.
• Review the suitability of the premises and ensure all areas are fit for the purpose for which they are being used, in relation to the location of decontamination equipment to reduce staff related events.

• Review the practice’s protocols to ensure audits of antibiotic prescribing are undertaken at regular intervals to improve the quality of the service. Practice should also ensure that, where appropriate, audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.