As the owner of a dental practice in England, you need to ensure that the relevant records, documents, and other evidence are routinely updated in the event of an inspection from the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Failing to provide adequate evidence during your CQC dental practice inspection could put your practice at risk, not to mention jeopardise the safety and satisfaction of your patients and employees.
In this article, we will introduce you to CQC dental practice inspections, exploring the different types of inspections, common mistakes made by practices, as well as how to create a CQC checklist for your dental practice.
What Are CQC Dental Practice Inspections?
Whether you operate as an NHS, private or mixed dental practice, you are legally required to register your practice with the CQC and maintain their health and social care standards. Established in conjunction with the Health and Social Care Act 2008, the CQC are responsible for auditing all of the dental practices in England, which it does through intermittent inspections.
Whenever the CQC conducts an inspection, they evaluate the performance of the practice in question relative to five key lines of enquiry (KLOE). These include:
- Safe: This relates to the safety of your patients and the measures you have in place to protect them from abuse and avoidable harm.
- Effective: This relates to the effectiveness of the care, treatment and support given to your patients, whether it maintains or improves their quality of life and whether it reflects best practices within the dental industry.
- Caring: This relates to the kindness, compassion, dignity and respect that your clerical and clinical staff show to your patients.
- Responsive: This relates to the organisation of your dental services and how equipped they are to meet the needs of your patients.
- Well-led: This relates to the quality of leadership, management and governance at your dental practice, how this influences the culture within your workplace, encourages innovation, and ultimately improves the experience of your patients.
Throughout your dental practice inspection, the CQC will score each KLOE based on the evidence provided; these scores contribute to their final assessment of your practice and its services.
Types of CQC Dental Practice Inspection
While the aim of every CQC dental practice inspection is to determine whether or not the practice in question meets their standards for health and social care, there are actually two types of inspection with slightly different approaches and intentions. The two types of CQC dental practice inspection are:
- Comprehensive: This is the most common type of inspection and involves reviewing all five KLOEs to assess the compliance of the practice in question with CQC standards.
- Focused: This type of inspection happens much less frequently and is used to address any concerns the CQC have about a particular practice, such as a change in its service provision or ownership status. These inspections rarely review all five KLOEs, but focus on those most relevant to their concerns.
Whichever inspection is being carried out on your practice, the CQC ordinarily give two weeks’ notice before their inspection is due to take place. This is known as an announced inspection. However, if complaints have been made against your practice, or it was reported by one of your current or former employees, the CQC may conduct their inspection without giving you any prior warning. This is known as an unannounced inspection.
Why Are CQC Checklists Important for Dental Practice Inspections?
During a CQC dental practice inspection, in addition to asking questions relevant to their five KLOEs, your inspector will collect evidence that demonstrates your compliance with their health and social care standards. As inspections are announced at short notice or with no notice whatsoever, it is crucial that dental practices have CQC checklists for inspections to ensure evidence is easily accessible and regularly updated.
In addition to safeguarding your organisation against unannounced inspections, preparing and maintaining a CQC checklist for your dental practice can promote a culture of compliance, accountability and reflection within your team. Other benefits to creating a CQC checklist include:
- Tracking important documents and policies
- Staying up-to-date with audits and risk assessments
- Maintaining accurate staff records
- Recording improvements from feedback
Example CQC Checklist for Dental Practice Inspection
While you may have some idea about the kind of evidence you should include in your checklist, we have created an example CQC checklist for dental practice inspections to get you started. We have organised the evidence relative to the five KLOEs, and we would recommend you do the same:
Safe Evidence
- Health and safety risk assessments for premises and equipment
- Fire safety guidelines and evacuation procedures
- Safeguarding policies for children and vulnerable adults
- Safeguarding training for clerical and clinical staff
- Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for clerical and clinical staff
- Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) assessments
- Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) policy and audits
- Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 01-05 compliance
- Decontamination protocols
- Sharps injury policy and protocol
Effective Evidence
- Staff induction and training plans
- Records of clinical audits
- Learning and improvement from audits
- Updated clinical protocols
- Access to medical histories and allergy checks
- Policies for referrals
- Records of patient consent
Caring Evidence
- Respectful language in patient correspondence
- Private consultation rooms for delivering sensitive information
- Chaperone policy and procedures
- Accommodations for patients with disabilities
- Patient satisfaction surveys
- Accessible complaint procedures
Responsive Evidence
- Accessible appointment system
- Reserving emergency appointment slots
- Accommodations for patients with additional needs
- Accessibility audits and improvements
- Feedback forms and actions taken following complaints
- Language support options
- Flexible opening hours
Well-led Evidence
- Clear leadership structure with responsibilities
- Performance reviews and appraisal records
- Professional development plans
- Staff meetings with agendas and minutes
- Staff rotas and absence records
- Whistleblowing policy
- Registration certificates (CQC, GDC, etc.)
Common Mistakes During CQC Dental Practice Inspections
Given the amount of evidence the CQC expects dental practices to provide, it is easy to misplace or overlook a document that could significantly impact your final assessment score. Some of the most common mistakes made by dental practices when preparing their CQC checklist include:
- Absence of a clear leadership structure
- Failing to educate staff about key policies or procedures
- Lack of safeguarding awareness or training
- Outdated or incomplete training records
- Failing to complete or act on the results of audits
- Handling complaints informally and failing to document actions
Can Newtons Help with CQC Dental Practice Inspections?
Preparing for CQC dental practice inspections can be stressful, especially when you have recently bought a practice and are in the process of correcting any issues you inherited from the previous owner. Thankfully, our team of specialist dental solicitors have an intimate knowledge of the records, documents and certificates your CQC inspector will expect to see. With their support during the creation of your checklists, you can relieve yourself of any stress involved in the process so that you can concentrate on what you do best!
If you need help preparing your CQC checklist for dental practice inspections, or you are in the process of purchasing your practice and would like support with your CQC application for registration as a new service provider, please contact us today, and a member of our team would be happy to assist you.