GOC not ruling out a Licence to Practise
The GOC will continue to explore the introduction of a Licence to Practise for opticians active in clinical practise as part of its revalidation scheme. Further proposals will now be prepared for September’s Council meeting.
Council took the decision to await further proposals after acknowledging that the arguments for and against a Licence to Practise are finely balanced following the recent consultation. 
The consultation considered three options:
- Option 1: Only those active in clinical practice are revalidated (identified by their having a Licence to Practise);
- Option 2: All registrants are revalidated; or
- Option 3: All registrants are revalidated but to different degrees
GOC director of standards, Jon Levett said: “The introduction of a Licence to Practise model could potentially be seen as adding further complexity to the regulatory regime. Conversely, it could offer greater options to build a revalidation scheme that is proportionate to the different degrees of risk for different registrants.
“Nothing has yet been decided and we are continuing to identify and research the key issues ahead of a decision in September.”
There will be further opportunities to be involved in the GOC’s consultation work on revalidation later in the year.
GOC promotes benefits of registration to patients
Having recently launched a logo that opticians can use to prove they are GOC-registered, this summer the GOC will promote to patients the importance of checking their optician is registered.
Information for patients about the importance of GOC registration, what to expect when they see the GOC registered logo and how to check the free online registers will be launched at the Citizens Advice conference in September. The GOC will also distribute the information to advice bureaux, NHS PCTs, Patient Advice and Liaison Services (PALs) and other patient support organisations.
Dian Taylor, GOC chief executive and registrar explains: “For patients, not knowing who is treating them, or what that person is qualified to do, can have a negative effect on the perception of, and respect for the professionals within a practice – where registered practitioners can be perceived as having the same level of expertise as an unqualified assistant. GOC registrants do a fantastic job, delivering eyecare to thousands of patients every year. We want the public to benefit from that reassurance also.”
If you’d like to receive copies of our information for patients once published, please contact Clare March on cmarch@optical.org or 020 7307 3473.
Investigation Committee guidance consultation
In April we published new guidance for our Investigation Committee. This guidance is a document to assist the Investigation Committee when it considers what action to take, if any, when considering Fitness to Practise complaints against opticians.
We consulted on revised guidance last year – many thanks to all stakeholders who responded to the consultation. You can read the new guidance on our website.
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