CQC Law and Dentists
Dentists who provide primary care dental services must be registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The CQC states that they will focus on ‘High Street’ dental practices and dental services which are provided in the community, outside of hospital settings.
Dentists must give clear information about the dental services that they provide to their patients, giving them the autonomy to make informed decisions, looking at alternative options for treatment, and being sign-posted to appropriate services where a dentist is unable to provide a remedy. CQC inspectors will scrutinise documentation, speak to patients about their experiences of the practice, look at the complaints processes that are in operation, and the indemnity and occupiers liability insurance products that the dental practice and their staff have in place. Staff CRB checks, along with qualification and registration checks must be in good order. A failure in any one area could leads to criticims being publised online. A dental practice must also display any rating CQC has given it, in their dental practice premises in a public facing location, ensuring it is visible. Furthermore, any inspection report must be publised on the dental practice’s website. CQC will also publish the report on their own website.
In some instances, CQC will issue breach notices and bring criminal prosecutions for regulatory non-compliance or statutory breaches. CQC can also impose conditions on a dental practice, or close a practice by cancelling regitration. There are opportunities to make reprresentations where this happens, and there is also an appeals process to the First Tier of the Care Standards Tribunal (Health and Social Care) and high appeal tiers and courts.
If you would like advice in relation to a CQC concern or CQC regulation generally, give us a call without obligation and in strict confidence to see how we can help you. Contact Dentists Legal Service on telephone number: 0370 977 0021
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