Archived: White House Dental Clinic

We carried out this unannounced inspection on 31 May 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 not providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

The White House Dental Clinic is in Eastbourne and provides NHS and private treatment to adults and children. The location is in the process of moving to a new building in the Eastbourne area. An application has been received and is being process by CQC.

There is no level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including blue badge holders, are available near the practice in local shopping centre.

The dental team includes 5 dentists, 1 dental nurse, 4 trainee dental nurses,1 dental hygienist, 2 registered managers and 2 receptionists. The practice has 5 treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by a company and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the Care Quality Commission as the registered manager. Registered managers have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run. Currently there are two registered managers at White House dental clinic. At the present time Ms Charlotte Robertson is registered manager in control of the location.

During the inspection we spoke with 2 dentists, 1 dental nurse, 1 dental hygienist, 1 receptionist and the practice manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open: 09.00 to 17.00 Monday to Friday

Our key findings were:

• The practice is about to move to different location.
• The provider had some infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
• The practice had some systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• The provider had some suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider had some 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.
• Staff were providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
• The provider had some 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 some suitable information governance arrangements.

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/s the provider was/is not meeting are at the end of this report.

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

• Review the practice’s systems for environmental cleaning taking into account the guidelines issued by the Department of Health - Health Technical Memorandum 01-05: Decontamination in primary care dental practices. In particular the use and storage of mop heads.
• Review the suitability of the premises and ensure all areas are fit for the purpose for which they are being used. (In particular the ground floor surgery)
• Review the fire safety risk assessment and ensure that any actions required are complete and ongoing fire safety management is effective.
• Review the current staffing arrangements to ensure all dental care professionals are adequately supported by a trained member of the dental team when treating patients in a dental setting taking into account the guidance issued by the General Dental Council.