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HS Financial Services - How to Satisfy CQC When Buying a Dental Practice
How to Satisfy CQC When Buying a Dental Practice

How to Satisfy CQC When Buying a Dental Practice

 

If you're in the market to buy a dental practice, it's important that you satisfy the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Whenever a practice has a change of ownership, it is necessary for both the buyer and seller to satisfy the CQC. The process for the buyer in particular can seem quite daunting - especially for those who are new to dental practice ownership. However, with the right preparation and guidance, it is possible to navigate all the steps successfully and ensure that you can meet all the requirements. Here are a few key points to keep in mind...

 

Preparation is Essential

 

One of the most important things to do is to do your research and prepare well in advance. Learn about the CQC standards for dental practices and familiarizse yourself with what is expected of you when buying a dental practice. This will help you understand the requirements and ensure that you can meet them as the new owner. ‘New providers’ are required to complete a long and detailed application form, providing information regarding employment history for the last 15 years with detailed explanations of any gaps.

 

Section 5 of the application form is crucially important and is all about the ‘How’. In this section, the new owner is required to explain how they will provide the regulated activities to satisfy the KLOE (Key Lines of Enquiry) requirements, and confirm that the service is safe, effective, caring, responsive, and well-led. An interview is also typically required to assess the new provider’s suitability to be registered for the provision of regulated activities. Proof will be sought here too, that the applicant is a fit and appropriate person to perform duties to a high standard.

 

Details and Timing

 

As soon as a sale is agreed, the CQC process should be started with the buyer completing an online application for a countersigned DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service) check. The process usually takes anywhere between 3-10 weeks, and the DBS is valid for 12 months. In the interim, the new provider application form should be completed via the CQC portal. Sometimes it’s necessary for the buyer to apply to go into partnership with the seller for the period of the handover.

 

In this instance, both the buyer and seller need to apply for partnership and the seller must cancel their existing provider registration at the same time. All applications should be checked thoroughly for errors including grammatical and spelling mistakes, as the CQC acceptance rules are very stringent and even minor errors can result in applications being rejected. To ensure CQC compliance, the registration must mirror exactly what is on the NHS contract if the practice holds one.

 

Need Some Help?

 

At MediEstates, we provide a free CQC Consultancy Service to help buyers navigate the CQC application process. We break down all the complexities and requirements and assist in much of the time-consuming work involved in the process. Clients are guided and prompted on the relevant actions throughout each stage.

 

Templates and examples are provided to help with each section of the application form, and final checks are completed before submission. We also assist our clients with interview preparation by providing a list of questions to consider and advice on to formulate responses.

 

The ability to satisfy the CQC is a vitally important part of buying a dental practice and gives assurance that on completion of the sale, the new practice owner can open on schedule and start their new venture with everything in place and ready to go.

 

If you’re planning to buy a dental practice, get in touch with our team today and let us guide you through each step of the process.

 

Posted by: Lorraine Hunt on

General Buyer Terms

This agreement is in relation to MediEstates Limited whose registered office is at 1st Floor, Pacific House, Stanier Way, Wyvern Business Park, Derby, DE21 6BF acting for and on behalf of our clients ("the Vendors"); and yourself (Buyer's Name) in relation for an introduction to a prospective sale of a business as a going concern. By registering through this agreement I agree to all terms set out below:

  1. Definitions
    In this Agreement the following terms and phrases shall have the following meaning unless the context otherwise requires:

    Business
    Dental Practice business providing dental care. This business is under the MediEstates Ltd sale terms.
    Confidential Information
    Means the actual Vendors identity and all confidential information in respect of the Business, including, but not limited to, any ideas, business methods, prices, accounts, finance, marketing, research, development, manpower plans, processes, market opportunities, intentions, design rights, product information, customer lists or details, employees’ details, trade secrets, computer systems and software, and other matters connected with the products or services manufactured, marketed, provided or obtained by the Vendor, and information concerning the Vendor’s relationships with actual or potential clients or customers and the needs and requirements of such clients’ or customers’ operations.
  2. Obligation of Confidentiality
    The Prospective Purchaser agrees to treat as confidential, information supplied by or on behalf of the Vendor in connection with the sale of the Business.
  3. Exclusions
    The obligation of confidentiality set out in clause 2 does not apply to:
    1. any information received from a third party who was legally free at the time of disclosure to disclose it;
    2. any information which was already lawfully in the Prospective Purchaser’s possession prior to receiving it from MediEstates Ltd on behalf of the Vendor; and
    3. any information which is in its entirety already in the public domain.
  4. Duties of Prospective Purchaser
    1. The Prospective Purchaser shall take such a reasonable security measures to protect the Confidential Information and trade secrets.
    2. The Prospective Purchaser shall not, without the prior written consent of the Vendor, permit any of the Confidential Information:
      1. to be disclosed, other than in confidence to its legal or professional advisors;
      2. to be copied or reproduced;
      3. to be commercially exploited in any way;
      4. to be used for any purpose other than in connection with the prospective purchase of the Business;
      5. MediEstates is registered under the Data Protection Act 2018. Upon Signing this agreement you agree to follow the legal obligations of this act to protect the details of the information supplied to you, with it no to be passed outside of the control of you the prospective purchaser.
    3. The Prospective Purchaser agrees to keep a record of Confidential Information received.
    4. The Prospective Purchaser will return to MediEstates or the Vendor all documents containing Confidential Information and all copies of those documents on demand at any time which are in its possession or under its control, and for this purpose the term “documents” includes computer discs and all other materials capable of storing data and information. The Prospective Purchaser agrees that such documents remain the property of the MediEstates on behalf of the Vendor.
    5. The Prospective Purchaser must not jeopardise or re-direct the sale under any circumstances.
    6. The Prospective Purchaser must not contact the Local Area Team or CCG regarding any practice sale, by any means of media unless written permission is granted from the Vendor.
    7. To carry out own due diligence on practice purchases and accepts that any information MediEstates has supplied is information provided by the vendor and is not responsible for its accuracy or completeness.
  5. This Agreement
    The existence of this Agreement and its terms are confidential and neither MediEstates nor the Purchaser may disclose anything about this Agreement or its subject matter or implementation to any person other than in confidence to their legal or professional advisers.
  6. Duties of Prospective Purchaser
    When buying Dental practices, finance is normally needed. Our organisation operated over more than one of the MediHoldings brand, by completing this from you agree that the information can be shared to our other organisations to avoid the need to register independently and provide the best possible service.

    MediEstates will refer you to the specialist dental lending team and MediFinancial who will contact the necessary banks, whom have preferential healthcare lending rates in some cases, to ascertain which funding is available to you.
    By signing this agreement you do not have to use any of the banks MediFinancial contact, it is just another service which we provide.
  7. Deposit for Dental Practice
    If you are interested in putting forward a formal offer in for a practice, once the offer is accepted there will be a deposit required to secure the practice sale which is dependant of the practice size. This deposit is held in a client account and will be returned to the buyer on completion of the practice sale. You the buyer, will be required to sign a deposit schedule which will cover the buyer and the seller in the event that the practice sale does not proceed.
  8. Changes to this Agreement
    Any changes made to this agreement must be authorised and signed by one of MediEstates Ltd Directors.
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