We visited The Dental Surgery on 31 January 2013 and found that the building was warm and clean and the staff treated patients with politeness and courtesy. We saw that there was a range of information in the reception area and posters promoting oral hygiene were displayed.

We saw that policies and procedures were accessible to staff and emergency medical equipment was in place. The surgery had contingency plans in place to be followed in the event of any emergency.

We looked at records, which were factual, up to date and relevant. Patients’ medical information, treatment plans and personal preferences were regularly reviewed and updated. We looked at a sample of staff files and saw that they were suitably qualified for their roles and we saw that training and development were ongoing.

Decontamination processes were seen to be followed appropriately and hygiene procedures were adhered to by staff, to minimise the risk of cross infection.

We spoke with three members of staff who demonstrated an awareness of safeguarding issues and the processes to be followed.

We spoke with seven patients who were all positive about the service. One patient said “The staff are attentive, respectful and always give advice that is understandable.” Another patient said “The service is good, the treatment excellent.”

We observed that the quality of the service was continually monitored. Complaints were taken seriously and used to inform changes and improvements to the service.