Nottingham Oral Health Centre

We carried out this announced comprehensive inspection on 8 August 2023 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 practice was meeting the legal requirements in the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and associated regulations.

The inspection was led by a Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspector who was supported by a specialist dental advisor.

To get to the heart of patients’ experiences of care and treatment, we always ask the following 5 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:

• Improvements should be made to the cleaning schedules and practices.
• The practice had infection control procedures which reflected published guidance.
• Staff knew how to deal with medical emergencies. Not all the appropriate medicines and life-saving equipment were available or in date.
• Improvements should be made to the systems for managing risks to patients, staff, equipment and the premises.
• Safeguarding processes were in place and staff knew their responsibilities for safeguarding vulnerable adults and children.
• The practice had staff recruitment procedures which reflected current legislation.
• Clinical staff provided patients’ care and treatment in line with current guidelines.
• Patients were treated with dignity and respect. Staff took care to protect patients’ privacy and personal information.
• Staff provided preventive care and supported patients to ensure better oral health.
• The appointment system worked efficiently to respond to patients’ needs.
• The frequency of appointments was agreed between the dentist and the patient, giving due regard to National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines.
• Improvements should be made to the systems for continuous improvement. Particularly, the schedules of audits.
• Staff felt involved, supported and worked as a team.
• Staff and patients were asked for feedback about the services provided.
• Complaints were dealt with positively and efficiently.
• The practice had information governance arrangements.

Background

Nottingham Oral Health Centre is in Nottingham and provides NHS and private dental care and treatment for adults and children.

There is a removable ramp to allow step free access to the practice for people who use wheelchairs and those with pushchairs. Car parking spaces, including dedicated parking for disabled people, are available at the practice. The practice has made reasonable adjustments to support patients with access requirements.

The dental team includes 3 dentists, 4 trainee dental nurses, 1 dental hygiene therapist and 1 receptionist. The practice has 2 treatment rooms, 1 of which is on the ground floor.

During the inspection we spoke with 3 dentists, 1 receptionist and 1 trainee dental nurse. We looked at practice policies, procedures and other records to assess how the service is managed.

The practice is open: Monday to Friday: from 9am to 5:30pm, Saturday: by appointment only.

We identified regulations the provider was/is not complying with. They must:

• Establish effective systems and processes to ensure good governance in accordance with the fundamental standards of care.

Full details of the regulation the provider was not meeting are at the end of this report.

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

• Improve the systems for environmental cleaning, including monitoring and recording to allow systems to be audited. Follow guidance issued by the National Patient Safety Agency in respect of using colour coded cleaning equipment.

• Implement audits for prescribing of antibiotic medicines taking into account the guidance provided by the College of General Dentistry.