Archived: The White House Dental Practice

We carried out an announced comprehensive inspection on 24 March 2016 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 White House Dental Practice is located in Hull, Humberside close to public transport links. The practice has one treatment room on the ground floor, one on the first floor and two on the second floor. There is a ground floor reception area, waiting rooms on the ground floor and second floor, two decontamination areas on the ground floor and second floor, an oral health promotion room and separate room for the Orthopantomogram (OPT) machine (an OPT machine is a panoramic scanning dental X-ray of the upper and lower jaw) in the basement, staff room and office were located on the third floor. Patient toilets were located on the ground floor.

There are three dentists (the practice owner and two associates), a Dental Hygiene and Therapist, a practice manager, two receptionists, a lead dental nurse and four dental nurses (two of which are trainees).

The practice offers NHS and private treatments including preventative advice, periodontal treatment and advanced restorative treatment.

The practice is open:

Monday – Thursday 07:30 – 17:00

Friday 07:30 – 13:00

The principal dentist/owner is registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) as an individual. 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 11 CQC comment cards providing feedback and spoke to five patients. The patients who provided feedback were very positive about the care and attention to treatment they received at the practice. They told us they were involved in all aspects of their care and found the staff to be welcoming, professional and friendly and they were treated with dignity and respect in a clean and tidy environment.

Our key findings were:

• 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.
• There was a complaints system in place. Staff recorded complaints and cascaded learning to staff.
• 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 sharps risk assessment
• Review the practice protocol for audits, including X-ray, infection prevention and control and patient dental care records to ensure the audits have documented learning points and action plans so the resulting improvements can be demonstrated and reviewed.