The Lindens Dental Centre

We carried out this announced inspection on 16 March 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 not providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

The Lindens Dental Centre is in Orpington in the London Borough of Bromley and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is level access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces are available at the front the practice for those with limited mobility.

The dental team includes 13 dentists, eight dental nurses, two dental hygienists and four receptionists. The clinical team are supported by two practice managers. The practice has five treatment rooms.

The practice is owned by a partnership and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the CQC 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 managers at The Lindens Dental Centre are the two senior partners.

On the day of inspection, we collected 38 CQC comment cards filled in by patients.

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

The practice is open:

Monday to Thursday 9.30am to 6pm

Friday 9.30am to 5pm

Saturday 9.30am to 1pm

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared to be visibly clean and well-maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• 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.
• 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.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
• The provider had some systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff, however improvements were needed to consider all risks.
• The provider had staff recruitment procedures which reflected current legislation, however improvements were needed to ensure all up-to-date documentation relating to staff is available.
• Improvements were needed to the recording of information in the dental care records.

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:

Implement audits for prescribing of antibiotic medicines taking into account the guidance provided by the Faculty of General Dental Practice.