We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 15 December 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.

Background

The Limes Dental Practice is situated in Epworth, North Lincolnshire. It offers mainly NHS dental treatment but also offer private options. The services include preventative advice and treatments, routine restorative dental care and orthodontics.

The registered provider has a money sharing agreement with another registered provider who also works from the same practice. Each provider are both responsible for all the staff members.

The practice is situated in a detached building. There is step free access to the premises.

The practice has three surgeries, a decontamination room, a waiting area and a reception area. One surgery is on the ground floor of the premises and the other two surgeries are on the first floor.

There are five dentists, five dental nurses and two receptionists.

The opening hours are Monday to Friday 9-00am to 5-00pm.

During the inspection we spoke with eight patients who used the service and reviewed 17 completed CQC comment cards. The patients were positive about the care and treatment they received at the practice. They told us they were treated with dignity and respect in a clean and tidy environment, informed of treatment options and were able to make appointments in a timely manner.

Our key findings were:

• The practice had systems in place to assess and manage risks to patients and staff including infection prevention and control, health and safety and the management of medical emergencies.
• Staff received training appropriate to their roles.
• Dental care records were detailed and showed that treatment was planned in line with current best practice guidelines.
• Oral health advice and treatment were provided in-line with the ‘Delivering Better Oral Health’ toolkit.
• Patients were treated with care, respect and dignity.
• The appointment system met patients’ needs.

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

• Review the practice’s policy on the storage of dental burs giving due regard to the guidance from the Department of Health - Health Technical Memorandum 01-05: Decontamination in primary care dental practices (HTM 01-05).
• Aim to undertake regular staff meetings in order disseminate learning to all staff.
• Aim to improve the audit system to include a quality assessment of X-rays and a fuller audit of dental care records.
• Aim to record in the dental care records a summary of discussions which have occurred with patients about treatment options including risks and benefits.

We saw that the dental practice provided care that included informed patient consent, clinical assessment that led to appropriate planning of dental care and interventions and a system of auditing and improving practice. The premises were clean, tidy and consideration had been given to reducing the risk of infection. The provider acknowledged that the decontamination facility required future refurbishment and had drawn up plans to achieve this. Staff received appropriate training and support to carry out their roles.

Patient survey results suggested high levels of satisfaction with the practice, and there was evidence that patient views and suggestions were sought regularly and considered.