How to Ensure Your Dental Practice Passes Fundamental Care Standards
Making sure your dental practice passes the fundamental standards set by the Care Quality Commission is crucial for ensuring quality and duty of care in the workplace. It’s no easy feat, though, so how can you make sure your staff maintains the correct standards?
The Care Quality Commission created the Fundamental Standards for all CQC registered providers to comply with. There are two regulations which all Health and Social Care providers must adhere to, including dental practices. These are:
- Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) Regulations 2014
- Care Quality Commission (Registration) Regulations 2009 (Part 4)
The standards have been created from these two regulations and all dental practices must make sure that they pass the requirements set by the fundamental standards. This is to ensure that training for dental practices is standardised and consistent across the country. It also allows the public to feel safe and confident when they are visiting the dentist.
Whether it’s an NHS dentist or private dentist, ensuring that the same, efficient quality of care is provided anywhere in the country is crucial. New patients can easily access information about dental practices and see which dental practices pass the fundamental standards, so keeping yours up to spec is absolutely crucial
What do the Fundamental Standards and Regulations Cover?
There is a detailed list outlining the regulations introduced by the fundamental standards. These include person-centered care, dignity and respect, and safeguarding.
The CQC has outlined five key questions which are asked when inspecting a dental practice, or any health and care provider. They are:
- Are they safe?
- Are they effective?
- Are they caring?
- Are they responsive to people’s needs?
- Are they well-led?
Each of these questions is then broken down into key lines of enquiry. Different lines of enquiry are used in different care environments and they help decide where the inspections need to focus on and investigate further areas of safety and standards. The CQC is very clear and transparent about what dental practices can expect from an inspection.
Although the questions look simple and straightforward, evidence from the dental practices will need to be shown to inspectors when they visit, demonstrating how they comply with the standards. The inspectors will be looking into specifics of the regulations and how dental practices meet them.
Can EduCare provide Appropriate Safeguarding Training for Dentists?
Correct training for dental practices is important, as it will lead to passing the standards set by the CQC and ensuring that a high quality of care is provided for every patient.
As part of our EduCare for Health® training course package, we offer training for dental practices to ensure they have the knowledge required to pass the fundamental standards and regulations from the CQC. The online training courses will provide up-to-date information about health and safety, safeguarding regulations and much more, making it ideal for any member of staff — from dentists to receptionists.
EduCare is passionate about making sure that all our training courses are up to date and provide the essential knowledge needed in the workplace. As such, the dental package is now providing learners with information about FGM, as all healthcare professionals have an obligation to report this.
The dental training package has over 45 hours of continued professional development (CPD) available for those taking the course. However, as some content covers basic information, such as washing and sterilising equipment, an experienced practitioner may require different CPD to suit their needs.
Why Choose an eLearning Course for Dental Training?
The flexibility of choosing an online training course allows staff members to carry out the training to fit around their schedule and can reduce the cost of hiring a trainer. The training is delivered in small, bite-size information, making it easy for people to digest.
As with all eLearning courses, the training package will develop a learner’s understanding of topics in a clear and relevant way. However, demonstration of competence and knowledge in practice is essential to making sure that the fundamental standards are understood and adhered to in the working environment.
