We carried out this announced inspection on 16 June 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

Drakes Dental Care –Brierfield is in Brierfield near Nelson and provides NHS treatment to adults and children.

There is disabled access with all three surgeries based on the ground floor. There is a public car park available next to the practice with disabled parking available.

The dental team includes a practice manager, two dentists, three dental nurses (two of whom are trainees) and one receptionist.

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 Drakes Dental care –Brierfield is the practice manager.

On the day of inspection we collected 23 CQC comment cards filled in by patients. This information gave us a positive view of the practice.

During the inspection we spoke with two dentists, one dental nurse, one receptionist, the owner of the company, group manager 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 –Friday 9am-5pm.

Our key findings were:

• The practice was clean and well maintained.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies.
• 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 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.

We spoke with a patient at the practice who made positive comments about the care and treatment they had received. Staff were described as 'friendly, pleasant and professional.' We were told that, "I feel safe in the dentists hands and I am given a full explanation of the treatment available to me and the dentist explains what each treatment means before he begins the work".

On the day of the visit we found the practice to be safe, clean and well maintained. People told us the practice was 'always very clean'.