• Dentist
  • Dentist

Archived: Penn Hill Dental Practice

1 Penn Hill, Yeovil, Somerset, BA20 1SF (01935) 474509

Provided and run by:
Mr. Gary Irvine

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

Latest inspection summary

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Overall inspection

Updated 24 January 2020

We carried out this announced inspection on 17 December 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 Care Quality Commission, (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 this practice was providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found this practice was providing effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found this practice was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found this practice was providing responsive care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

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

Background

Penn Hill Dental Practice is in Yeovil, Somerset and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

The practice is based within a grade II listed building and is not able to provide level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Patients can park for a short period on the street outside the practice.

The dental team includes the principal dentist, a foundation dentist, two dental nurses, one dental hygienist and two receptionists. The practice has three treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by an individual who is the principal dentist there. They have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run.

On the day of inspection, we collected 50 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with three other patients.

During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist and the foundation dentist, two dental nurses, one dental hygienist and two receptionists. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open:

Monday 9am-5pm

Tuesday 9am-6:30pm

Wednesday and Thursday 9am-5:30pm

Friday 9am-5pm

Our key findings were:

  • The practice appeared to be visibly clean and well-maintained.
  • The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
  • Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
  • The provider had 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 had staff recruitment procedures which reflected current legislation.
  • 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 provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
  • The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
  • The provider had effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.
  • Staff felt involved and supported and worked 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 information governance arrangements.

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

  • Improve the practice's systems for checking and monitoring equipment taking into account relevant guidance and ensure that all equipment is well maintained. In particular ensuring regular testing of smoke detectors.
  • Take action to ensure all clinicians 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.
  • Improve the security of NHS prescription pads in the practice and ensure there are systems in place to track and monitor their use.
  • Implement a system to ensure patient referrals to other dental or health care professionals are centrally monitored to ensure they are received in a timely manner and not lost.