The Bournville Village Dental Practice

We carried out this announced inspection on 3 September 2019 under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 as part of our regulatory functions. We planned the inspection to check whether the registered provider was meeting the legal requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations. The inspection was led by a CQC inspector who was supported by a specialist dental adviser.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following five questions:

• Is it safe?

• Is it effective?

• Is it caring?

• Is it responsive to people’s needs?

• Is it well-led?

These questions form the framework for the areas we look at during the inspection.

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 Bournville Village Dental Practice is in Birmingham and provides private treatment to adults and children.

There is level access for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Public car parking spaces are available near the practice but there are no dedicated spaces for blue badge holders.

The dental team includes one dentist, two dental nurses (one of whom is also the practice manager), two dental hygienists and one receptionist. There is also an additional dentist who only carries out facial aesthetic procedures at the practice. The practice has four treatment rooms and a separate room for carrying out decontamination.

The practice is owned by an individual who is the principal dentist there. They 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 collected 52 CQC comment cards that had been completed by patients. We spoke with one dentist, two dental nurses (one of whom is the practice manager) and the receptionist. We looked at practice policies and procedures and other records about how the service is managed.

The practice is open between 9am and 5.30pm from Monday to Friday.

Our key findings were:

• The practice appeared clean and well maintained.
• The provider had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with emergencies. Appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available with the exception of clear face masks.
• The practice had systems to help them manage risk to patients and staff.
• The provider had suitable safeguarding processes and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The provider had staff recruitment procedures. Improvements were needed to ensure the availability of complete immunisation records for all clinical staff members and the completion of essential pre-employment checks.
• The clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Staff treated patients with dignity and respect and took care to protect their privacy and personal information.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system took account of patients’ needs.
• The provider had effective leadership and a culture of continuous improvement.
• Staff felt involved and supported and worked well as a team.
• The provider asked staff and patients for feedback about the services they provided.
• The provider dealt with complaints positively and efficiently.
• The provider had suitable information governance arrangements.

There were areas where the provider could make improvements. They should:

• Take action to ensure the availability of equipment in the practice to manage medical emergencies taking into account the guidelines issued by the Resuscitation Council (UK) and the General Dental Council.
• Implement an effective system for recording the fridge temperature to ensure that medicines and dental care products are being stored in line with the manufacturer’s guidance.
• Take action to ensure that all clinical staff have adequate immunity for vaccine preventable infectious diseases.
• Take action to ensure all clinicians are adequately supported by a trained member of the dental team when treating patients in a dental setting taking into account the guidance issued by the General Dental Council.
• Improve the practice’s arrangements for ensuring good governance and leadership are sustained in the longer term.