30 July 2014
During a routine inspection
All of the patients we spoke with were happy with the dental treatment they received. One patient said 'the dentist is excellent and explains thing very well. I had an x-ray and the dentist took a photo, she [the dentist] showed me clearly on the screen and used laymens terms [non-technical language] to explain the problem and treatment options'. Patients told us they received advice about how to maintain good oral health.
Patients said they were involved in their treatment plans and their permission was sought before any treatment started. One said 'they explained sedation and how I would feel. I was told I would need a responsible adult to come and pick me up afterwards. I was given pages of written information and I signed a consent form'. We saw patients had a treatment plan which they signed as consent to the treatment and costs.
Patients we spoke with told us the practice was always clean and tidy, one said 'it's really, really clean. Everyone always looks very smart and clean as well'. We found current infection control guidelines were followed to reduce the risk of infection.
The provider had effective staff recruitment and selection processes. We saw that appropriate checks were undertaken to ensure staff had the appropriate skills and qualifications do the job.
The practice operated systems to regularly monitor the quality of care and treatment patients received and used this information to improve the service it offered.