We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 30 June 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 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.

Leigh Dental Centre offers NHS and private dental care services to patients of all ages. The services provided include preventative advice and treatment and routine restorative dental care. Treatment and waiting rooms are on all on the ground floor.

The practice has four dentists, some are part time; they are supported by four dental hygiene therapists, dental nurses, receptionists and a practice manager. The principal dentist is the registered manager. 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.

The practice is open between 8am to 5.30pm Monday to Wednesday. Appointments were available up to 7pm on Thursdays and the practice was open between 8am and 2pm on Fridays and Saturdays.

We spoke with three patients who used the service on the day of inspection and reviewed 49 completed CQC comment cards. Patients we spoke with and those who completed comment cards were positive about the care they received about the service. They commented that staff were caring, helpful and respectful, treatment was well explained, the practice was clean and that they had no problems getting appointments.

Our key findings were:

• The practice recorded and analysed significant events and complaints and cascaded learning to staff.
• Where mistakes had been made patients were notified about the outcome of any investigation and given a suitable apology.
• There were effective systems in place to reduce the risk and spread of infection. We found all treatment rooms and equipment appeared clean.
• There were systems in place to check all equipment had been serviced regularly, including the suction compressor, autoclave, fire extinguishers, oxygen cylinder and the X-ray equipment.
• Staff had received safeguarding and whistleblowing training and knew the processes to follow to raise any concerns.
• Patient’s care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with evidence based guidelines, best practice and current legislation.
• The practice ensured staff maintained the necessary skills and competence to support the needs of patients.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies and appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were readily available.
• Patients received clear explanations about their proposed treatment, costs, benefits and risks and were involved in making decisions about it.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect and confidentiality was maintained.
• The appointment system met the needs of patients and waiting times were kept to a minimum.
• There was an effective complaints system and the practice was open and transparent with patients if a mistake had been made.
• The practice was well-led and staff felt involved and worked as a team.
• Governance systems were effective and there was a range of clinical and non-clinical audits to monitor the quality of services.
• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients about the services they provided.