Updated 10 May 2019
We undertook a focused inspection of Avon House Dental Practice on 25 March 2019. This inspection was carried out to review in detail the actions taken by the registered provider to improve the quality of care and to confirm that the practice was now meeting legal requirements.
The inspection was led by a CQC inspector.
We undertook a comprehensive inspection of Avon House Dental Practice on 29 October 2018 under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions.
We found the registered provider was not providing well led care and was in breach of regulation 17 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014. You can read our report of that inspection by selecting the 'all reports' link for Avon House Dental Practice on our website www.cqc.org.uk.
As part of this inspection we asked:
• Is it well-led?
When one or more of the five questions are not met we require the service to make improvements and send us an action plan. We then inspect again after a reasonable interval, focusing on the areas where improvement was required.
Our findings were:
Are services well-led?
We found this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.
The provider had made improvements in relation to the regulatory breaches we found at our inspection on 29 October 2018.
Background
Avon House Dental Practice is in Keynsham and provides NHS and private treatment to adults and children.
There is no level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs as the practice is on the first floor. Twin hand rails are provided on the staircase leading up to the practice. At the bottom of the stairs is a door bell and notice for anyone needing assistance on the stairs to use to alert the staff on reception. Car parking spaces are available near the practice.
The dental team includes two dentists and a foundation dentist, three dental nurses and one trainee dental nurse, one dental hygiene therapist, one receptionist and a practice manager. 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.
During the inspection we spoke with the principal dentist, one dental nurse, one receptionist and the practice manager. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.
The practice is open:
- Monday – Friday 09.00am – 1.00pm and 2.00pm – 5.45pm
-
Closed at weekends.
Our key findings were:
- The practice had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
- The provider had comprehensive safeguarding processes. Staff had received training and knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children. They were clear about the need to have written evidence of a third party to consent to treatment for a child or vulnerable adult.
- The provider had reviewed the management of the practice and there was effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.