Acceptance criteria
The acceptance criteria document is a case management tool we use to decide if a complaint against a registrant amounts to an allegation of impaired fitness to practise that should be investigated under Section 13D of the Opticians Act 1989. This is the law under which the GOC is permitted to investigate a registrant’s fitness to practise.
This page summarises the acceptance criteria. It explains the types of concerns that we may investigate under section 13D of the Opticians Act 1989 and how we decide if a concern amounts to an allegation that a registrant’s fitness to practise may be impaired. The full acceptance criteria can be found at the bottom of the page.
Types of concerns we investigate
1. Misconduct
Misconduct refers to serious concerns about a registrant’s behaviour. We consider whether:
- The concern relates to the registrant’s conduct
- The conduct is serious enough to raise concern about their fitness to practise
Examples of serious misconduct may include:
- Falsifying records, especially after receiving a complaint
- Failing to declare a criminal conviction or police caution
Minor issues, such as a one-off clinical error or poor complaint handling without serious consequences, are unlikely to amount to misconduct.
2. Deficient Professional Performance
This refers to situations where a registrant’s standard of professional work is unacceptably low. We consider whether:
- The concern relates to the registrant’s professional performance
- The concern is supported by a fair sample of their work
An example may be the repeated or widespread failures in clinical record keeping.
3. Convictions and Cautions
We may investigate when a registrant has received a criminal conviction or accepted a police caution. We will consider whether:
- There is a criminal conviction or caution
- It is linked to the registrant’s professional practice
- It raises wider public interest concerns
Some convictions or cautions, such as minor motoring offences without aggravating features, may not result in regulatory action. Examples of aggravating features include driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and receiving a custodial or suspended sentence.
4. Health Concerns
We may investigate concerns that a registrant’s unmanaged or unacknowledged physical or mental health condition could put patients, the public, or the registrant themselves at risk. We will consider whether:
- There is a physical or mental health condition
- The registrant has failed to manage the condition or seek treatment
5. Decisions by Other Bodies
We may investigate if another regulatory body, either in the UK or overseas, has found that a registrant’s fitness to practise is impaired.
How we decide whether to investigate
We consider each case individually, based on the seriousness of the concern and the evidence provided. Concerns that are minor, have been resolved locally, or are not relevant to professional practice may not be investigated further. For more information see how we investiage a concern.
