Archived: South Coast Dental Specialists Dorchester

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 1 February 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

South Coast Dental Specialists Limited is a private dental practice which receives referrals from dental professionals such as a patient's own dentist, for second opinion or treatment planning. The practice specialises in implants, prosthetics, periodontic and endodontic treatment, cosmetics, dentures and bite problems, veneers, crowns and bridge-work.

The practice is situated in a converted domestic dwelling situated in the centre of Dorchester, Dorset. The practice has five dental treatment rooms, a CT scanner room and a separate decontamination room used for cleaning, sterilising and packing dental instruments. The practice operates over two floors and provides lift access for patients with mobility difficulties and wheelchair users.

The practice employs seven dentists, a hygienist, five dental nurses, two receptionists, a secretary and a practice manager. The practice’s opening hours are 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday.

The practice owner 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.

Before the inspection we sent Care Quality Commission comment cards to the practice for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the practice. We collected 28 completed cards and obtained the views of five patients on the day of our visit. These provided a positive view of the services the practice provides. All of the patients commented that the quality of care was good.

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 1 February 2016 as part of our planned inspection of all dental practices. Our inspection was carried out by a lead inspector and a dental specialist adviser.

Our key findings were:

• The practice ethos was to provide high quality patient centred care at all times

• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies; appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment was readily available in accordance with current guidelines.

• The practice was clean and well maintained.

• Infection control procedures were robust and the practice followed published guidance.

• The practice had a dedicated safeguarding lead professional and effective safeguarding process in place for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.

• Staff reported incidents and kept records of these which the practice used for shared learning.

• The dentist and dental hygienist provided dental care in accordance with current professional guidelines

• The service was aware of the needs of the local population and took these into account in how the practice was run.

• Patients could access treatment, urgent and emergency care when required.

• The practice had a dentist who could provide a range of more specialised services including dental implants and orthodontics and there were enough supporting staff to deliver the services on offer.

• Staff had received training appropriate to their roles and were supported in their continuing professional development.

• Staff we spoke with felt well supported by the practice owner who was committed to providing a quality service to their patients.

• Information from 28 completed CQC comment cards and patients who were asked for their views of the service on the day of our visit gave us a positive picture of a friendly, caring and professional service.