GOC Standard 19: Duty of Candour in Optical Practice

Building Trust Through Honesty and Transparency

Welcome to this focused course on the professional duty of candour as applied to optical practice. Whether you're an optometrist, dispensing optician, practice manager or front‑of‑house colleague, this course will help you recognise when candour is required, act promptly and compassionately, and embed reliable systems that protect patients and staff while supporting continuous learning.

The course is grounded in GOC Standard 19 and reflects operational realities in optical settings (including dispensing, referrals, data handling and environmental safety). You will learn practical steps for immediate response, clear communication and robust documentation - all designed to preserve trust, prevent escalation and close the learning loop after an incident.

What You Will Learn

• The definition and purpose of candour in optical practice, and how it supports patient safety and professional standards.
• Common triggers in optics (missed or delayed referrals, dispensing or prescription errors, data breaches, environmental incidents, equipment faults and near misses).
• A simple, first‑hour checklist to protect patients and begin candour (safety, prompt acknowledgement, apology, containment, named contact, record).
• A practical conversation scaffold and phrase bank for timely, humane apologies and factual explanations.
• The minimum dataset for documentation and templates to standardise records and letters.
• Triage principles to decide the level of response (near miss, minor, moderate/major harm) and when statutory or external notifications are required.
• How to operationalise candour: policies, roles, templates, training, contractual clauses and practical checks.
• The learning loop (capture → analyse → act → verify → share) with examples of verification and audit.
• Governance, escalation routes (CQC, ICO, indemnity) and staff wellbeing after difficult disclosures.
• Exam‑style practical prompts, scenario‑based steps and quick checklists to use immediately in practice.

Candour in practice: acknowledge promptly, say a sincere apology, explain facts plainly, take immediate safety steps, and agree who will update and when. Document every step.

How This Course Will Help You

By completing this course you will be able to:

• Respond quickly and confidently when care or service falls short, reducing harm and preserving the therapeutic relationship.
• Deliver consistent, humane communication that meets professional and (where applicable) statutory expectations.
• Create and use practical tools - phone scripts, written‑follow up templates, incident logs and verification audits - that make candour routine and auditable.
• Know when to involve indemnity, when to notify external bodies, and how to protect evidence and staff welfare.
• Propose and implement one high‑impact system change with a clear verification method to reduce recurrence.

Who Should Take This Course

• Optometrists and dispensing opticians
• Practice managers and owners
• Reception and administrative teams
• Locums and new starters
• Clinical governance leads and safety officers

Course Structure & Learning Approach

The course uses short modules with practical examples and scenario work:

1. Why candour matters and how it maps to GOC Standard 19
2. Triggers and recognition - screening questions to decide "Is candour required?"
3. First‑hour actions and immediate patient safety steps
4. Communication skills: apologies, scripts and what to avoid
5. Documentation: the minimum dataset, templates and secure storage
6. Triage, escalation and external notifications (CQC, ICO, indemnity)
7. Learning, audit and verification techniques
8. Governance, team debriefs and staff wellbeing

Each module includes concise checklists, templates and exam‑style prompts so you can apply learning straight away.

Quick Practical Tips to Use Now

• If in doubt, act promptly: check patient safety first, then call and apologise.
• Use short factual language - no speculation or conditional minimising phrases.
• Record who spoke, when, what was said, and any agreed actions or dates.
• Offer practical remedies (no‑cost remake, transport, urgent review) and confirm them in writing.
• Inform indemnity early if harm may lead to claims; preserve evidence for serious incidents.

Final Notes

This course is both practical and professional: it equips you to meet the letter and the spirit of Standard 19, protect patients, support colleagues and close the loop on learning. We are pleased you've chosen to join us - work through the modules at your own pace, make use of the templates and scripts, and practise the short checklists until they become routine.

Get started now - your next step will make a real difference to patient care and team confidence.