The Care Quality Commission
  • Dentist
  • Dentist

Well Street Dental Care

220 Well Street, London, E9 6QT (020) 8533 0626

Provided and run by:
Well Street Dental Care Limited

Important: The provider of this service changed. See old profile

All Inspections

19 May 2023

During a routine inspection

We carried out this announced comprehensive inspection on 19 May 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.
  • Staff knew how to deal with medical emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
  • The practice had systems to manage risks for patients, staff, equipment and the premises.
  • Safeguarding processes were in place and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
  • 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.

Background

Well Street Dental Care is part of Colosseum, a group dental provider. .

The practice is in the London Borough of Hackney and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

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 3 dentists, 1 dental therapist, 2 dental nurses, and 5 trainee dental nurses. The clinical team are supported by 1 practice manager and 2 receptionists.

The practice has 4 treatment rooms.

During the inspection we spoke with 1 dentist, 1 dental nurse, 2 receptionists, and the practice manager. We also spoke with the area quality compliance manager.

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

The practice is open:

8am to 7.30pm on Mondays and Tuesdays

9am to 6pm on Wednesdays to Fridays

9am to 3pm on Saturdays

31 January 2017

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 31 January 2017 to ask the practice the following key questions; Are services safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led?

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

Well St Dental Care is located in the London Borough of Hackney and provides NHS and private dental services.

The opening hours for the practice were Monday to Friday 9.00am am to 6.30pm.

The premises consist of three treatment rooms, a decontamination room, and a reception area.

The practice comprises of three dentists, four nurses an assistant manager and a practice manager.

The provider’s head of compliance was the registered manager. A registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the practice is run.

During the inspection we asked patients to complete CQC comment cards. We received feedback from eight patients. The patients who provided feedback were positive about the care and treatment they received at the practice. They told us they were involved in all aspects of their care and found the staff to be caring and helpful and they were treated with care, dignity and respect.

Our key findings were:

  • There were effective processes in place to reduce and minimise the risk and spread of infection.
  • Patients’ needs were assessed and care was planned in line with current guidance such as from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).
  • Patients were involved in their care and treatment planning.
  • There was appropriate equipment for staff to undertake their duties and equipment was well maintained.
  • Staff were trained in and there was appropriate equipment for them to respond to medical emergencies.
  • Patients told us that staff were caring and treated them with dignity and respect.
  • Patients indicated that they felt they were listened to and that they received good care from a helpful and caring practice team.
  • There were processes in place for patients to give their comments and feedback about the service including making complaints and compliments.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements and should:

  • Review the protocol for completing accurate, complete and detailed records relating to employment of staff.
  • Review its audit protocols to document learning points that are shared with all relevant staff and ensure that the resulting improvements can be demonstrated as part of the audit process.

16 October 2012

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We found that the provider had made improvements to the service.

The dental chairs had been serviced and equipment used to transfer instruments were also in good condition. The staff team had reviewed the decontamination process and reorganised the decontamination area, removing all unnecessary items and poster displays. The dental nurses were using a magnifier to check that they had washed instruments thoroughly in line with national guidance.

Since the last inspection, we noted that the provider no longer stocked or dispensed medicines due to the very low demand for this service. We saw evidence that the service managed the emergency medicines and local anaesthetics appropriately.

Our inspection of 2 April 2012 found that some patients' consultation records did not appear to have been signed by the person receiving the treatment. We reviewed the records of all the people who had visited the service earlier in the day. These had been signed. The provider was also routinely auditing patient records to check their accuracy and completeness.

2 April 2012

During a routine inspection

We spoke with two people using the service and their family members. People said it was easy to obtain an appointment and they had not had to wait long to be seen. People were happy with the service they received. They said the staff were friendly and polite and one person noted that the staff were good at putting children at ease. People felt their privacy was respected. People said the premises were clean enough in their experience.

Although the people we spoke with were happy with the service, we were unable to get a broader picture of people's views because the service had not successfully obtained people's feedback. We also had some concerns about infection control, medicines management and record keeping at the service.