The provider had an appropriate system in place for gathering, recording and evaluating information about the quality and safety of care the service provided. The practice had a clinical governance policy in place which outlined their governance arrangements.

All four people we spoke with told us that the reception area and the surgery was always clean. One person said "It is immaculate". Another person said "It is exceptionally clean, not a piece of dust in the place".

We spoke with four people who used the service. All of them stated that their needs had been met by appropriate treatment. One person told us that they were very pleased with the way the dentist had treated them. They said “The dentist recommended a crown but gave me a range of choices and told me all about each choice".

Records showed that people were given verbal and written information about their treatment. Each patient was given a written plan which explained the proposed treatment. One person we spoke with said "They give me a plan to take away with me, it tells me how much my treatment is going to cost".

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 21 February 2017 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.

Background

Liss Dental Practice is a dental practice providing general dental care for both adults and children under private arrangements. The practice is situated on the first floor of a converted commercial property in Liss, a town situated in Hampshire.

The practice has two dental treatment rooms on the first floor of the premises and a separate dedicated decontamination room.

The practice employs two dentists and two dental nurses, one of whom is a trainee dental nurse.

The practice’s opening hours are between 8.30am and 6.00pm on Monday and Wednesday and 8.30 am and 5.00pm Tuesday to Friday and Thursday 8.30am to 1pm.

There are arrangements in place to ensure patients receive urgent medical assistance when the practice is closed.

One of the practice owners 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

Before the inspection, we sent CQC comment cards to the practice for patients to complete to tell us about their experience of the practice. We received feedback from 18 patients. These provided a completely positive view of the services the practice provides. Patients commented on the high quality of care, the caring nature of all staff, the cleanliness of the practice and the overall high quality of customer care.

Our key findings were:

• We found that the practice ethos was to provide high quality general dental care in a relaxed and friendly environment.
• Effective clinical and management leadership was provided by the practice owners.
• Staff had been trained to handle emergencies, appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were readily available in accordance with current guidelines.
• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• There was appropriate equipment for staff to undertake their duties, and equipment was well maintained.
• Infection control procedures were robust and the practice followed published guidance.
• The practice had effective processes in place for safeguarding adults and children living in vulnerable circumstances.
• There was a process in place for the reporting and shared learning of untoward incidents which occurred in the practice.
• Dentists provided dental care in accordance with current specialist professional and National Institute for Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
• The service was aware of the needs of the local population and took these into account in how the practice was run.
• Patients could access treatment and urgent and emergency care when required.
• Staff received training appropriate to their roles and were supported in their continued professional development (CPD) by the practice.
• Staff felt well supported by the practice owners and were committed to providing a high-quality service to their patients.
• Information from 18 completed CQC comment cards gave us a positive picture of a friendly, caring, professional and high quality service.

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

• Review the availability of a hearing loop for patients who are hearing aid users.
• Include details of The Ombudsman in the complaints policy.