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GOC Standard 19: Duty of Candour in Optical Practice

Building Trust Through Honesty and Transparency

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Duty of Candour in Optics
Why Candour Matters
Legal & Professional Framework
Triggers for Duty of Candour
Clinical Errors (Scenario 1)
Communicating with Patients
Apologising Appropriately
Dispensing Errors (Scenarios)
Recording and Escalation
Confidentiality Breaches
Learning from Incidents
Team Reflection: Scenarios
Reflection & Improvement
Duty of Candour - Exam Notes
Reading List
Course Completion
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Scenarios: Dispensing Errors

Dispensing errors can lead to falls, headaches, or loss of confidence.^[6]^[1]

Scenario 3 - Wrong spectacle lenses

Scenario

A patient received newly glazed varifocal spectacles that were found to have the wrong corridor length. After collecting the glasses and using them at home, the patient tripped on stairs and sustained a minor injury.

What does duty of candour require now?^[1]^[2]^[3]

A prompt, apologetic call with a plain explanation of the glazing error is typically followed by clinical review, a no-cost remake, and practical support such as transport or a work note.^[2]^[5]^[3]
A written account confirms the injury management and records the event as both an incident and a candour case.^[3]^[1]
Controls commonly include a lab-specification double-check, flagged high-risk jobs, and a benchside checklist with signatures.^[7]^[8]

Scenario 4 - Contact lens mix-up

Scenario

During collection two patients' contact lenses were switched; one of the patients developed pain and redness after wearing the incorrect lenses.

How might communication and apology proceed?^[1]^[4]

Both patients are contacted with an apology.
The symptomatic patient is advised to stop wear and attend for assessment.^[4]
Lenses are replaced and aftercare provided at no cost.^[5]^[1]
The explanation includes what happened and what will change (for example, separate pick-up boxes and an identity check at handover), with written confirmation.^[8]^[3]
Storage, labelling, and peak-time staffing are reviewed to reduce error-prone handovers.^[7]^[8]

Accountability and learning (for both scenarios)

Accountability details to record: who made contact; what clinical checks occurred; when written candour was sent; why specific process changes are expected to reduce risk.^[1]^[3]
Learning actions: identity-check scripts at collection; barcode or QR matching; brief audits over four weeks to confirm compliance.^[8]^[7]^[1]

References (numbered in text)

The professional duty of candour — General Optical Council Find (opens in a new tab)
Openness and honesty when things go wrong: The professional duty of candour — General Medical Council; Nursing and Midwifery Council Find (opens in a new tab)
Regulation 20: Duty of candour — Care Quality Commission Find (opens in a new tab)
Keratitis, CL-associated infiltrative — The College of Optometrists Find (opens in a new tab)
OC Guidance on Managing Non-Tolerance Issues — Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO) Find (opens in a new tab)
Effect on falls of providing single lens distance vision glasses to multifocal glasses wearers: VISIBLE randomised controlled trial — Mark J Haran, Ian D Cameron, Rebecca Q Ivers, Judy M Simpson, Bonsan B Lee, Michael Tanzer, Mamta Porwal, Marcella M S Kwan, Connie Severino, Stephen R Lord — BMJ 2010 Find (opens in a new tab)
Bar Code Medication Administration Technology: A Systematic Review of Impact on Patient Safety When Used with Computerized Prescriber Order Entry and Automated Dispensing Devices — Kieran Shah, Clifford Lo, Michele Babich, Nicole W Tsao, Nick J Bansback — Canadian Journal of Hospital Pharmacy 2016 Find (opens in a new tab)
A systematic review of the effectiveness, compliance, and critical factors for implementation of safety checklists in surgery — Annegret Borchard, David L B Schwappach, Aline Barbir, Paula Bezzola — Annals of Surgery 2012 Find (opens in a new tab)

Key Points

Please take a moment to review these points, reflect on their significance and consider how they apply to your own experiences.

Tick to confirm (optional):

Dispensing errors can cause physical harm, distress and loss of confidence.
Duty of candour requires prompt, apologetic contact with a plain explanation of what happened.
Provide clinical review and practical remedies (e.g. no-cost remake, lens replacement, aftercare).
Send a written account to document injury management and record the event as an incident and a candour case.
Implement process controls: lab-specification double-checks, flagged high-risk jobs, benchside checklists with signatures.
For contact-lens mix-ups, contact both patients, advise symptomatic patients to stop wear and attend assessment, and provide replacements and aftercare at no cost.
Communicate planned changes to reduce recurrence (separate pick-up boxes, identity checks at handover, improved storage/labelling and staffing during peak times).
Record accountability: who made contact, what clinical checks occurred, when written candour was sent, and why chosen process changes will reduce risk.
Learning actions: identity-check scripts, barcode/QR matching and brief audits over four weeks to confirm compliance.

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Course Snapshot

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Length: 60 minutes CPD (1.00 CE Credits)
Appropriate for: Optometrists, Dispensing Opticians, Practice Managers, Optical Assistants, Reception Staff, Trainee clinicians and practice governance leads.
Course Price: Free
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Harvard

Mecourse Lifelong Learning (2025) ‘Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors’. Mecourse Lifelong Learning [Online]. Available at: https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors [Accessed 12 May 2026].

Vancouver

Mecourse Lifelong Learning. Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors [Internet]. Mecourse Lifelong Learning; 2025 Aug 22 [cited 2026 May 12]. Available from: https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors.

Chicago

Mecourse Lifelong Learning. “Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors.” 2025. https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors. Accessed May 12, 2026.

APA

Mecourse Lifelong Learning. (2025, August 22). Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors. https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors

IEEE

Mecourse Lifelong Learning, “Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors.” Mecourse Lifelong Learning. https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors (Accessed: May 12, 2026).

AMA

Mecourse Lifelong Learning. Scenario Page 2: Dispensing Errors. Mecourse Lifelong Learning. Published August 22, 2025. Accessed May 12, 2026. https://www.mecourse.com/scenario-page-2-dispensing-errors.

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GOC Standard 19: Duty of Candour in Optical Practice

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Scenarios: Dispensing Errors

Scenario 3 - Wrong spectacle lenses

Scenario 4 - Contact lens mix-up

Accountability and learning (for both scenarios)

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