Practice Duties, Governance and Safe Systems

Dental practices must have governance systems that turn legal and regulatory duties into everyday working practice. This includes clear policies, named leads, training, risk assessments, audits, incident reporting routes, records systems, complaints processes and evidence that actions have been completed.

For dental nurses this means knowing where key procedures are kept, who is responsible for each area, and what to do when a routine process fails. Senior dental nurses and practice managers often translate legal and regulatory requirements into practical workflows.

Important practice systems include

• Infection prevention and decontamination procedures.
• Health and safety, COSHH and sharps systems.
• Medical emergency drugs and equipment checks.
• Safeguarding, complaints, incident and concern-raising routes.
• Data protection, confidentiality and record-keeping processes.
• Equality, accessibility and reasonable adjustment arrangements.

A practice system should be current, accessible and understood. If staff cannot find the safeguarding policy, do not know how to report a patient safety issue, or are following an out-of-date decontamination procedure, that is a governance gap.

What owners and managers should have in place

A safe practice system is visible, current, understood and used. If staff cannot find or follow it, the system needs attention.