We carried out this announced inspection on 27 November 2017 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

Caspian Dental Clinic is in Bushey, Watford and provides private treatment to patients of all ages.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and pushchairs. A car parking space is available near the practice.

The dental team includes one dentist and one trainee dental nurse. The dental nurse also takes on the role of receptionist. The practice has one treatment room.

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 15 CQC comment cards filled in by patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

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

The practice is open:

Monday and Tuesday from 10 am to 7pm.

Thursday and Friday from 9am to 5pm.

Saturday from 10am to 4pm.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which mostly reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and most of the recommended life-saving equipment were available. Equipment that was not available was obtained immediately following the inspection.
• The practice had some 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. They did not always record references.
• 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 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 dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.

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

• Review the practice’s infection control procedures and protocols to take into account guidelines issued by the Department of Health - Health Technical Memorandum 01-05: Decontamination in primary care dental practices and have regard to The Health and Social Care Act 2008: ‘Code of Practice about the prevention and control of infections and related guidance’.
• Review availability of interpreter services for patients who do not speak English as a first language.