The Care Quality Commission
  • Dentist
  • Dentist

Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green

592 Finchley Road, London, NW11 7RX

Provided and run by:
Dr. Parvin Kapoor

All Inspections

8 January 2024

During an inspection looking at part of the service

We undertook a follow up focused inspection of Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green on 8 January 2024. This inspection was carried out to review the actions taken by the registered provider to improve the quality of care and to confirm that the practice was now meeting legal requirements.

The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who had remote access to a specialist dental advisor.

We had previously undertaken a comprehensive inspection of Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green on 28 July 2023 under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. We found the registered provider was not providing well-led care and was in breach of regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014.

You can read our report of that inspection by selecting the 'all reports' link for Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green dental practice on our website www.cqc.org.uk.

When 1 or more of the 5 questions are not met we require the service to make improvements and send us an action plan. We then inspect again after a reasonable interval, focusing on the areas where improvement was required.

As part of this inspection we asked:

  • Is it well-led?

Our findings were:

Are services well-led?

We found this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

The provider had made improvements in relation to the regulatory breaches we found at our inspection on 28 July 2023.

Background

Asmile Dental Clinic is in Golders Green, in the London Borough of Barnet and provides private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is step free access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces are available near the practice. The practice has made reasonable adjustments to support patients with access requirements.

The dental team includes the principal dentist who was the registered manager, 1 associate dentist, 1 dental nurse and 1 trainee dental nurse. The practice has 1 treatment room.

During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist. We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday from 12pm to 7pm.

Friday by appointment only.

Saturday from 10am to 6pm once a month.

28 July 2023

During a routine inspection

We carried out this announced comprehensive inspection on 28 July 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.
  • Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available. Improvements were needed to staff’s knowledge of how to deal with medical emergencies.
  • The practice had some systems to manage risks for patients, staff, equipment and the premises. Improvements were needed to the systems of assessing, monitoring and mitigating the risks associated with fire.
  • Safeguarding processes were in place and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
  • Improvements were needed to the recruitment procedures to ensure that appropriate checks were completed prior to new staff commencing employment at the practice.
  • Radiation equipment was serviced and tested in line with the relevant guidance. Improvements were needed to ensure the practice registered working with ionising radiation generators with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
  • 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.
  • Improvements were needed to ensure clinicians adopted an individual risk based approach to patient recalls taking into account the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
  • The practice had some systems in place to drive continuous improvement. However, there was a lack of effective leadership.
  • Improvements were needed to ensure patients were asked for feedback about the services provided.
  • Complaints were dealt with positively and efficiently.
  • The practice had information governance arrangements.

Background

Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green is in Golders Green in the London Borough of Barnet and provides private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is step free access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces are available near the practice. The practice has made reasonable adjustments to support patients with access requirements.

The dental team includes the principal dentist who was the registered manager, 1 associate dentist, 1 dental nurse and 1 trainee dental nurse. The practice has 1 treatment room.

During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist. We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday from 12pm to 7pm.

Friday by appointment only.

Saturday from 10am to 6pm once a month.

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:

  • Take action to ensure audits of antimicrobial prescribing are undertaken at regular intervals to improve the quality of the service. The practice should also ensure that, where appropriate, audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.
  • Improve and develop staff awareness of autism and learning disabilities and ensure all staff receive appropriate training in this.

5 July 2016

During a routine inspection

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 5 July 2016 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

Asmile Dental Clinic Golders Green located in Golders Green provides private dental treatment to patients of all ages.

Practice staffing consists of the dentist/registered manager and one dental nurse/receptionist

The dentist is 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.

The practice is open Monday, Tuesday and Thursdays 1pm to 6pm

The practice facilities include one treatment room, a shared reception and waiting area, decontamination room and small office area.

11 patients provided feedback about the service. Patients we spoke with and those who completed comment cards were very positive about the care they received about the service. Patients told us that they were happy with the treatment and advice they had received.

Our key findings were:

  • Staff had received safeguarding children and adults training and knew the processes to follow to raise any concerns. The practice had whistleblowing policies and procedure and staff were aware of these and their responsibilities to report any concerns.
  • Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained.
  • 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 received clear explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
  • The practice had a procedure for handling and responding to complaints, which were displayed and available to patients.
  • There were systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. Dental instruments were cleaned and sterilised in line with current guidance. However a legionella risk assessment had not been carried out.
  • Staff had been trained to handle medical emergencies, and appropriate medicines and oxygen were readily available. However the practice did not have an automated external defibrillator (AED).
  • Equipment, such as the air compressor had not been well maintained or tested for effectiveness.
  • There were some governance arrangements in place for the smooth running of the practice. However the practice did not have a structured plan in place to monitor quality and safety. The practice had not effectively monitored and mitigated the risks associated with carrying out the regulated activities.
  • Rubber dam was not used in all root canal treatments.

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

  • Review availability of equipment to manage medical emergencies giving due regard to guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK), and the General Dental Council (GDC) standards for the dental team.
  • Review the practice’s responsibilities as regards to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002 and, ensure all documentation is available and staff understand how to minimise risks associated with the use of and handling of these substances.
  • Review the systems for checking and monitoring equipment to ensure that all equipment is well maintained.
  • Review the practice’s protocols for the use of rubber dam for root canal treatment taking into account guidelines issued by the British Endodontic Society
  • Review the practice’s audit protocols of various aspects of the service, such as radiography and dental care records at regular intervals to help improve the quality of service. Practice should also check all audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.

26 April 2012

During a routine inspection

Patients told us that they were made aware of the treatment options available to them including the cost of treatment and alternatives. We were told "they explain everything and give the options; they tell me how much it will cost and what the costs are for".

Patients using the service told us they felt safe in the hands of the dentist and dental nurse. One person explained that both he and his wife had received complex treatment from the dentist and that they felt confident and reassured through the treatment visits".

The practice's complaints procedure was clearly on display in the waiting area and people were encouraged to voice any concerns in the first instance with practice staff. One of the people spoken with commented that they had never needed to make a complaint but would feel able to raise any complaints directly with the dentist.

Patients told us that the practice 'was always very clean, bright and friendly' and that staff were 'professional and very knowledgeable'. One patient told us that staff always wore protective clothing when they visited and that this included gloves and masks.