Peartree Dental Care

We carried out this unannounced comprehensive inspection on 19 October 2022 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 second CQC inspector and a specialist dental adviser.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we ask five key questions:

• Is it safe?
• Is it effective?
• Is it caring?
• Is it responsive?
• Is it well-led?

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

Our findings were:

• Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.

• The practice was not clean and not well-maintained.
• The provider’s infection control procedures were not operated effectively.
• The provider did not operate effective systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• The provider had safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider’s staff recruitment procedures were not operated effectively.
• The clinicians provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
• Staff training was not monitored effectively.
• The provider did not have effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff did not feel involved and supported by the provider.

Background

Peartree Dental Care is in Southampton and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is step free access to the practice for wheelchair users and those with pushchairs.

On street car parking spaces are available near the practice.

The dental team includes 2 dentists, 2 qualified dental nurses (one of which is also the practice manager), 3 trainee dental nurses, 1 dental hygienist and a receptionist.

The practice has 4 treatment rooms of which 3 are in use.

During the inspection we spoke with 2 dentists, 2 trainee dental nurses, 1 qualified dental nurse, a receptionist and the practice manager. The provider or their management team were not present during our visit.

We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday to Friday between 8.30am and 5pm.
The practice closes for lunch each day.

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.
• Ensure persons employed in the provision of the regulated activity receive the appropriate training necessary to enable them to carry out their duties.
  
• Ensure recruitment procedures are established and operated effectively to ensure only fit and proper persons are employed and specific information is available regarding each person employed.
  
  Full details of the regulation/s the provider was not meeting are at the end of this report.

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

• Implement protocols regarding the prescribing and recording of antibiotic medicines taking into account guidance provided by the Faculty of General Dental Practice in respect of antimicrobial prescribing.
• Improve the practice protocols regarding auditing patient dental care records to check that necessary information is recorded.

The practice manager accepted the clinical and non-clinical issues raised and started to take action 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.