Archived: Fountain St Dental Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 3 November 2016 to ask the practice the following key questions; Are services safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led?

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

Fountain Street Dental Practice is owned by Mr Christian Turner and is situated in the town centre of Ulverston Cumbria. The practice has six surgeries, a decontamination room, a reception area and two waiting areas. The reception area and two surgeries are on the ground floor of the premises. The remaining four surgeries and the patient toilet are situated on the first floor and there is a waiting area for patients. Access to the practice is restricted at the front by a number of steps. People needing easy access can enter through a door at the side of the building which has ramp access. The building is a listed building so the provider is unable to make changes to the access to the building. The practice moved to the premises in 2009 with Mr Turner taking over sole responsibility in the last three years. The practices has benefitted from an internal redesign and redecoration in 2014.

Mr Turner is the principal dentist who is supported by four associate dentists, two part time dental hygiene therapists, 12 qualified dental nurses, a receptionist and a group practice manager. There is also a designated decontamination technician working in the practice.

The opening hours are Monday, Wednesday Thursday and Friday from 9.00am to 5.30pm. On a Tuesday the practices opens at 10.00am until 6.30 pm. The reception remains open throughout the day.

The principal dentist is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as an individual. Like registered providers, they are ‘registered persons’. Registered persons 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 reviewed 28 completed CQC comment cards. The patients were positive about the care and treatment they received at the practice. Comments included staff were friendly, polite and caring. They also commented that treatments were explained clearly, they were listened to and options about treatment were offered.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was visibly clean and uncluttered.
• The practice had systems in place to assess and manage risks to patients and staff including health and safety and the management of medical emergencies.
• Staff were qualified and had received training appropriate to their roles.
• Patients were involved in making decisions about their treatment and were given clear explanations about their proposed treatment including costs, benefits and risks.
• Dental care records showed that treatment was planned in line with current best practice guidelines.
• Oral health advice and treatment were provided in-line with the ‘Delivering Better Oral Health’ toolkit (DBOH).
• We observed that patients were treated with kindness and respect by staff.
• Staff ensured there was sufficient time to explain fully the care and treatment they were providing in a way patients understood.
• The practice had a complaints system in place and there was an openness and transparency in how these were dealt with.
• Patients were able to make routine and emergency appointments when needed.
• The governance systems were effective.
• There were clearly defined leadership roles within the practice and staff told us that they felt supported, appreciated and comfortable to raise concerns or make suggestions.

We identified the practice did the following which had a positive impact on patient experience and health outcomes.

The practice assisted in the pilot for the Cumbria referral pathway for endodontics. Endodontist are dentists who specialize in restoring teeth through different procedures which involve treating the pulp (nerve) and roots of teeth. The pilot referral network is for complex endodontic cases for general practitioners and secondary care to refer complex endodontic cases including trauma. The collated data includes the type of referral, the referring practice and practitioner, and the treatment outcome (quality). The data reflects not only the quality of care and treatment provided for those patients, but the types of referrals and subsequently any learning needs identified for the referring dentists

We believe this to be notable practice worth sharing as it demonstrates involvement with other organisations in planning services and making sure people’s needs are met.