We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 20 October 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

Valley Bridge Dental Practice is situated in Scarborough, North Yorkshire and is a partnership. The practice offers a mix of NHS and private dental treatments. The services include preventative advice, routine restorative dental care and dental implants.

The practice has four surgeries, a decontamination room, a reception area and a waiting room. Toilets are available on both floors.

There are three dentists, one hygienist, six dental nurses and a practice manager.

The layout of the practice is on two floors where two surgeries are located on the ground floor and two surgeries are on the first floor along with the decontamination room.

The practice is open:

Monday – Friday 08:30 – 17:00

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.

On the day of inspection we received 28 CQC Care Quality Commission comment cards providing feedback and spoke to three patients. The patients who provided feedback were positive about the care and treatment they received at the practice. They told us they were involved in all aspects of their care and found the staff to be excellent, efficient, caring and they were treated with dignity and respect in a clean and tidy environment.

Our key findings were:

• There was a complaints system in place. Staff recorded complaints and cascaded learning to staff.
• Staff had received safeguarding training, knew how to recognise signs of abuse and how to report it.
• There were sufficient numbers of suitably qualified staff to meet the needs of patients.
• Staff had been trained to manage medical emergencies.
• Infection control procedures were in accordance with the published guidelines.
• Patient care and treatment was planned and delivered in line with evidence based guidelines, best practice and current regulations.
• 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 patients’ needs.
• The governance systems were effective.
• The practice sought feedback from staff and patients about the services they provided.

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

• Implement a policy for lone working.

We spoke to people in private at the practice address. Everyone we spoke to said that they were treated with respect. They said they signed to say they agreed with the treatment and that they had their treatment options explained to them so that they could make an informed decision about dental care and treatment. Everyone spoken to said they received good dental care and treatment. One person said that she had been considering a particular procedure and the dentist had explained this to her and had written her options down so that she had information she could refer to. She said she felt confident that she was receiving the correct treatment for her dental needs. Another person said the hygienist spent time explaining about dental health and that she felt better informed after this. People said that the dentist had considered their safety, individual requirements and that he was reassuring. For example, one person said the practice was well laid out and that the dentists surgery was easily accessible on the ground floor. She said the dentist was flexible about appointment times which meant she could fit in her appointments around children and busy family life. Another person said that the dentist spoke to her in a kind and thoughtful way which helped ease any anxiety. People said they considered the surgery and reception area to be clean and hygienic. We looked at patient surveys and there was no evidence that anyone had recorded a concern about this.