The Care Quality Commission (CQC) served two notices to Dr Ammaad Jamil at Great Cornard Dental Practice, near Sudbury, on February 5.
The notices are for failing to meet the regulations related to the safe care and treatment and well-led management at the practice.
The report stated: “We found this practice was not providing safe care in accordance with the relevant regulations.
“We will be following up on our concerns to ensure they have been put right by the provider.”
Inspectors found that several staff members were not aware of their safeguarding responsibilities, and that recruitment procedures did not reflect current legislation.
In particular, it highlighted DBS checks not being completed at the correct level for three staff members and not being completed at all for one staff member.
It was also not able to show risk assessments for three staff members or a process to avert risk of Hepatitis B immunity in another instance.
Meanwhile, the inspector found that leadership was not always effective and systems to support a culture of continuous improvement and development were not established.
This comes as an anonymous source contacted this paper, highlighting fears over “incomplete care”.
They said that patients feel “trapped” by the practice and feel unable to leave due to the lack of NHS dental availability in the area.
The main concerns were patients experiencing more than a dozen appointment changes, frequent booking cancellations, poor service and limited communication.
“If there were other NHS dentists taking patients, I would have left a long time ago, but there aren’t, so you feel stuck”, added the anonymous patient.
Meanwhile, the CQC says that the eight patients were contacted in relation to its report, which all gave positive feedback.
It said: “Patients commented positively about the standards of cleanliness.
“They told us they were able to book appointments within an acceptable timescale for their needs and that they had enough time during their appointment without feeling rushed.”
The watchdog also added that once the practice’s shortcomings have been put right, the likelihood of further notices in the future is “low”.
Dr Ammaad Jamil and Great Cornard Dental Practice have been contacted for comment.