Archived: M P Wong & Associates

We carried out this announced inspection on 13 June 2017 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 providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

M P Wong and Associates is located in Walthamstow in the London Borough of Waltham Forest and provides NHS and private treatment to patients of all ages.

The dental practice is located on the ground and first floor of an adapted residential property and there is level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs.

The dental team includes the two dentist partners and one associate dentist, two dental nurses and a trainee dental nurse. The practice has three treatment rooms, two of which are located on the ground floor.

The practice is owned by a partnership 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. The registered manager at M P Wong and Associates was one of the dentist partners.

On the day of inspection we collected 50 CQC comment cards filled in by patients and spoke with two other patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

During the inspection we spoke with the three dentists and two dental nurses. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open between 9.30am and 1pm and between 2pm and 5pm on Mondays to Fridays (excluding Bank Holidays).

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance and these were regularly audited to ensure their effectiveness.
• The practice had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.
• The practice had thorough staff recruitment procedures which were followed when employing new staff.

• 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.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs including patients who required emergency dental treatment.
• The practice had effective leadership. Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The practice asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The practice had systems to deal with complaints positively and efficiently.
• Staff were trained in basic life support and knew how to deal with emergencies. However some medicines and life-saving equipment as per current national guidelines were not available. The practice responded immediately to procure these pieces of equipment and medicines.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risks and monitor quality though improvements could be made in some aspects of governance and risk management within the practice.

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

• Review the protocols and procedures for use of X-ray equipment taking into account Guidance Notes for Dental Practitioners on the Safe Use of X-ray Equipment.

• Review the practice’s protocols for recording in the patients’ dental care records or elsewhere the reason for taking the X-ray and quality of the X-ray ensuring compliance with the Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (IRMER) 2000.

• Review the practice's protocols for completion of dental care records taking into account guidance provided by the Faculty of General Dental Practice regarding clinical examinations and record keeping.

• Review the practice’s audit protocols to ensure audits of various aspects of the service, such as infection control and radiography are undertaken at regular intervals to help improve the quality of service. Practice should also ensure that where appropriate audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.