Archived: Bell House Dental Practice

We carried out this announced comprehensive inspection on 28 March 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’s infection control procedures were not effective.
• Staff knew how to deal with medical emergencies.
• The provider did not operate effective systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• Safeguarding processes were in place and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• Staff recruitment procedures were not operated effectively.
• Clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect.
• 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.
• Staff felt involved, supported and worked as a team.
• Staff and patients were asked for feedback about the services provided.
• The practice did not have appropriate quality assurance processes to encourage learning and continuous improvement.
• The practice’s information governance arrangements required improvement.

Background

Bell House Dental Practice is situated in Tetbury and provides private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is step free access to the practice, via a ramp for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs.

Car parking spaces, including dedicated parking for disabled people, are available near the practice. The practice has made reasonable adjustments to support patients with access requirements.

The dental team includes 1 dentist, 2 dental nurses and a dental hygienist.

The practice has 2 treatment rooms.

During the inspection we spoke with 1 dentist, 2 dental nurses and a dental hygienist.

We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

• Monday 8.30am to 5.00pm
• Tuesday 9.00am to 5.00pm
• Wednesday 8.30am to 1.00pm
• Thursday 9.00am to 5.00pm
• Friday 8.30am to 1.00pm

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

• Establish effective systems and processes to ensure good governance in accordance with the fundamental standards of care.

Full details of the regulation 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.
  
• Improve the practice protocols regarding auditing patient dental care records to check that necessary information is recorded.

The provider accepted the shortfalls that we raised and took immediate action the day of our inspection to begin to address these.

Where evidence is sent that shows the relevant issues have been acted on, we have stated this in our report, but we cannot say that the practice is compliant for that key question as this would not be an accurate reflection of what was found on the day of our inspection.