Blog
The risks and penalties of money laundering for charities and how to guard against it
Nicola Finnerty
On 1 April 2016, the General Optical Council (GOC) Code of Conduct for Registrants (the Code) will be replaced by Standards of Practice for Optometrists and Dispensing Opticians (the Standards) and Standards for Optical Students.
The GOC states that the purpose of the Standards is to provide clarity on its expectations of Registrants, ensure public protection and consistency with developments across the healthcare sector. The underlying message remains the same; the overriding consideration of all Registrants should be the care, well-being and safety of patients.
The length of the Standards documents speaks volumes. The Code was a 7 page document in contrast to the 2 Standards documents which run to 29 and 33 pages respectively. The Standards set out 19 individual standards that all Registrants must adhere to.
The Standards include guidance, designed to provide additional clarity to Registrants on each of the standards; there is even a suggestion that further guidance may be provided in the future, if considered necessary. Whilst the Standards are more detailed than the current Code, and thereby provide clarification to Registrants as to the standard of professional performance/conduct expected of them, the accompanying guidance reminds Registrants that they must exercise their professional judgement in order to ensure that they adhere to the Standards.
Some key requirements of the Standards are as follows:
The proposed Standards are clear and provide Registrants with much more guidance on what is expected of them during the course of their professional duties. When the consequences for breaches of standards can be serious, including removal from the register; providing greater clarity around the scope and operation of the standards is the appropriate response of a fair and responsible regulator.
Further information
Please contact Shannett Thompson or Rebecca Ryan for further information. You may also wish to visit our Defending Regulated Professionals page.
We welcome views and opinions about the issues raised in this blog. Should you require specific advice in relation to personal circumstances, please use the form on the contact page.
Nicola Finnerty
Nicola Finnerty
Katie Allard
Skip to content Home About Us Insights Services Contact Accessibility
Share insightLinkedIn Twitter Facebook Email to a friend Print