Briggate Dental

We carried out this announced inspection on 10 June 2019 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

Briggate Dental is in Leeds and provides NHS and private treatment to adults and children.

Due to the nature of the premises, wheelchair access would not be possible. Wheelchair users or those who were unable to manage the stairs would be signposted to either the local community dental service or an accessible local dental practice. Car parking spaces are available near the practice.

The dental team includes three dentists, five dental nurses (who also cover reception duties), one dental hygienist / therapist and one receptionist. 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.

On the day of inspection, we collected 45 CQC comment cards filled in by patients.

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

The practice is open:

Monday to Wednesday from 9:00am to 5:00pm

Thursday from 9:00am to 7:00pm

Friday from 9:00am to 4:30pm

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained. It was due to undergo a full refurbishment towards the end of the year.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance. Improvements could be made to ensure a log of each sterilisation cycle is maintained.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. On the day of inspection, the medical emergency equipment and medicines did not reflect nationally recognised guidance. Immediate action was taken to address this.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff. Recommendations identified in the Legionella and fire risk assessment were due to be completed when the practice was due to be refurbished.
• The provider had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider had thorough staff recruitment procedures.
• 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 were providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
• The provider had effective leadership and culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The provider asked patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had suitable information governance arrangements.

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

• Review the practice’s infection control procedures and protocols taking into account the guidelines issued by the Department of Health in the Health Technical Memorandum 01-05: Decontamination in primary care dental practices. In particular, the logging of individual sterilisation cycles.
• Review the process for ensuring the availability of medical emergency equipment taking into account the guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK).
• Review the practice’s protocols to ensure audits of infection prevention and control are undertaken at regular intervals. The practice should also ensure that, where appropriate, audits have documented learning points and the resulting improvements can be demonstrated.