Archived: Tracey Bell Clinic

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 10 September 2015. The practice has one principal dentist and two associate dentists. There are two dental hygienist/ therapists, one dental nurse, a dental nurse trainee, and an operations assistant. The practice provides cosmetic dental services to private patients. The practice is open Monday and Saturday 9am – 5.30pm; Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays 9am – 6pm.

The principal dentist is the registered provider. A registered provider is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to manage the service. Registered providers have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated Regulations about how the practice is run.

We viewed 11 CQC comment cards that had been left for patients to complete prior to our visit. All of the comment cards reflected positive comments about the staff and the services provided. Patients commented that the practice was clean and hygienic; they found the staff very friendly, courteous and professional. They had trust and confidence in the dental treatments and said explanations were clear and understandable.

The practice was providing care which was safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led in accordance with the relevant regulations. Improvements were needed to ensure the practice was safe.

Our key findings were:

• The practice recorded and analysed accidents, incidents and complaints and discussed outcomes with staff.
• Some staff had received safeguarding training and all knew the processes to follow to raise any concerns.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Staff had been trained to deal with medical emergencies and emergency medicines and emergency equipment were available.
• Infection control procedures were in place and the practice followed published guidance.
• Patients’ care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with evidence based guidelines, best practice and current legislation.
• Patients received verbal and written explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained.

• The appointment system met the needs of patients and waiting times were kept to a minimum.
• The practice staff felt involved and worked as a team.

• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients about the services they provided.

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

• Record, analyse, report and review significant clinical incidents, events and near misses in a way that is specific to clinical events.
• Provide the safeguarding lead and other clinical staff with an appropriate level of training for their role.
• Staff are trained and updated regularly in infection prevention and control policies and procedures relevant to their role.
• Establish a process to assess performance of staff and develop individual training plans.
• Undertake and document cyclical clinical audits relevant to the practice and service provided
• Ensure checks of the emergency equipment are accurate and documented.
• Carry out an infection control audit on a regular basis to demonstrate compliance with current Department of Health's guidance, Health Technical Memorandum 01-05 (HTM 01-05): Decontamination in primary care dental practices (HTM01-05).
• Document clinical staff immunisation against Hepatitis B to demonstrate the immunisation had been effective.
• Document receipt of and actions in respect of all safety alerts.