We carried out this announced inspection on 28 January 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 Care Quality Commission 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

321 Dental is in the London Borough of Camden. The practice provides private treatment to patients of all ages.

The practice is located on the ground floor and there is step free access to both treatment rooms. The practice is located close to public transport bus and train services.

The dental team includes two principal dentists who own the practice, one dental hygienist and one dental nurse. The clinical team are supported by a practice administration manager.

The practice is owned by a company and as a condition of registration must have a person registered with the Care Quality Commission as the registered manager. Registered managers have legal responsibility for meeting the requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations about how the practice is run. The registered manager at 321 Dental was one of the principal dentists.

On the day of inspection we received feedback from 23 patients.

During the inspection we spoke with one of the principal dentists, the dental nurse 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, Tuesdays and Fridays between 9.30am and

Wednesdays and Thursdays between 9.30am and 6.30pm

Late appointments and Saturday appointments are available upon request.

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk.
• The practice had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding adults and children.
• The practice 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.
• The practice was providing preventive care and supporting patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs.
• The practice had effective leadership.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The practice asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The practice had arrangements to deal with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The practice had suitable information governance arrangements.

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

• Review the practice’s protocols for recording in the patients’ dental care records or elsewhere the reason for taking the X-ray and quality of the X-ray ensuring compliance with the Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (IRMER) 2000.
• Review the practice's protocols for completion of dental care records taking into account guidance provided by the Faculty of General Dental Practice regarding clinical examinations and record keeping.

The practice was friendly, welcoming and informative. We saw that patients were listened to in all areas of the practice. The surgery was clean throughout and there was evidence of high quality service delivery. Patients were consented appropriately and the staff were well trained and caring. The staff were observed to be well organized.

Patients were complimentary about the practice they said that the staff were "very good". We spoke to two users of the service who told us that they were treated with respect and dignity. They told us that they were "fully informed" about the choices, costs, alternatives and possible outcomes of their treatment.