Updated 12 May 2023
We undertook a follow up focused inspection of Latchford Dental Surgery on 19 April 2023. This inspection was carried out to review 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 who was supported by a specialist dental advisor.
We had previously undertaken a comprehensive inspection of Latchford Dental Surgery on 19 October 2022 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 Latchford Dental Surgery on our website www.cqc.org.uk.
When 1 or more of the 5 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.
As part of this inspection, we asked:
- Is it well-led?
Our findings were:
Are services well-led?
We found this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulation.
The provider had made improvements in relation to the regulatory breach we found at our inspection on 19 October 2022.
Background
Latchford Dental Surgery is in Bedford and provides private dental care and treatment for adults and children.
There are two steps leading to the practice although access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs is provided using a ramp to the ground floor surgery. Car parking spaces are available near the practice. The practice has made some adjustments to support patients with additional needs.
The dental team includes 6 dentists, including specialists in Orthodontics, Endodontics, Periodontics and Prosthodontics, 5 dental nurses including 1 temporary dental nurse, 2 dental hygienists, 1 receptionist, an administrative assistant, a secretary who works offsite, and an accounts manager. The practice has 5 treatment rooms, one of which is on the ground floor.
During the inspection we spoke with 2 dentists, 3 dental nurses, and the administrator. We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.
The practice is open:
Monday to Friday from 8.45am to 5pm.
There was an area where the provider could make improvements. They should:
- Take action to ensure audits of antimicrobial prescribing and record keeping are undertaken at regular intervals to improve the quality of the service. Practice should also ensure that, where appropriate, audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.