We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 2 September 2015 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 this practice was providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services effective?

We found this practice was providing effective care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services caring?

We found this practice was providing caring services in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services responsive?

We found this practice was providing responsive care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Are services well-led?

We found this practice was providing well-led care in accordance with the relevant regulations.

Background

Clare Street Dental Centre is a small practice located in the centre of Bristol. It provides NHS and private general and cosmetic dentistry to people living or working in the area. The practice has three general dentists and two dental hygienists. There are payment systems available, such as Denplan, for patients to pay for treatments. The dental centre is open Monday – Friday from 9am – 5pm but closes for lunch between 1pm-2pm daily.

There is a registered manager in place, a registered manager is a person who is registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. 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.

We reviewed seven comment cards that had been completed by patients. The comments made praised the treatment provided and the staff team .Patients said they received professional, caring and compassionate care in a very friendly and clean environment. They used comments such as ‘first class service’ and ‘excellent’ to describe their experience of the practice.

Our key findings were:

• There were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection.
• We found all treatment rooms well planned and equipped, with good light and ventilation.
• There were systems in place to check all equipment had been serviced regularly, including the air compressor, autoclave, fire extinguishers, oxygen cylinder and the X-ray equipment.
• We found the dentists regularly assessed each patient’s gum health and took X-rays at appropriate intervals.
• The practice ensured staff maintained the necessary skills and competence to support the needs of patients.
• The practice kept up to date with current guidelines and was led by a proactive management team.
• During our visit we observed staff were kind, caring, competent and put patients at their ease.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements and should:

• Ensure through the record audit process the General Dental Council standards for records are fully implemented.
• Review the accessibility of the isolation switch for x-ray equipment installed for patient safety.

People told us that they were able to make appointments when they needed them. There were spaces allocated each day for dental emergencies. We were told that treatment options were explained and treatment plans were provided. People told us that they were made aware of all the costs that would be incurred during a course of treatment.

People were given opportunity to provide feedback on the service because comment cards were available in the waiting area and patient satisfaction surveys were carried out.

Staff received training in first aid, meaning that patients would be protected in the event of an emergency and procedures were in place to minimise the risks of cross infection.