Profession-specific standards2 hours
Ethics for Optometrists and Opticians
The OOB Code applied to sales targets, conflicts, consent and costs, honest advertising, errors, confidentiality, driving, children, older people and colleagues.
Profession-specific standards
Professional Standards for Optometrists and Opticians
Registration categories, contact lens practice, referral, examination and records, dispensing, supervision, CPE and accountability under the OOB
- 2hours (estimated)
- 10sections
- 20final questions
- 80%pass mark
- PDFcertificate
- Online and self-paced, on any device
- Reflective account template
- Knowledge checks in every section
- Instant certificate of completion
What you will learn
- Describe the Board's role under the Optometrists and Opticians Act 2007 and the layers of standards: Act, regulations, Code and Professional Practice Guidelines.
- Summarise the main duties of the Code of Professional Conduct and identify which other bodies regulate aspects of eye care.
- Explain what optometrists and each category of optician may do, including the age-eight refraction rule.
- Explain registration types, practising certificate requirements and the section 25 offences.
- Apply safe contact lens fitting, supply and aftercare, recognising that all lenses are HSA-regulated medical devices.
- Recognise eye disease that needs referral, triage by urgency and follow up referrals reliably.
- Carry out and document competent examinations, review all pre-test results and meet PDPA duties for records.
- Dispense to a structured standard and keep support staff within protocols and outside regulated activities.
- Run genuine, honestly reported supervision and communicate findings, referrals and safety advice reliably across languages.
- Plan CPE to the Board's requirements and respond well to a complaint, Board inquiry or condition.
Who this course is for
Optometrists and opticians registered with the Optometrists and Opticians Board in any category, provisional and conditional registrants and their supervisors, and practice owners and clinical leads.
After a concern
Structured learning and a written reflection to show insight after a complaint, an investigation or a board inquiry.
Routine CPD
Focused learning on a core standard of practice, with a certificate and reflection for your portfolio.
About this course
A practical course on the professional standards the Optometrists and Opticians Board (OOB) applies to optometrists and opticians in Singapore. It covers the Optometrists and Opticians Act 2007, its regulations, the Board's Code of Professional Conduct and Professional Practice Guidelines; the four registration categories and the limits of each, including the rule that opticians refract only patients aged eight and above; registration types and the practising certificate; section 25 offences for unregistered practice and employing unqualified persons; contact lens practice, HSA regulation of lenses and aftercare; recognising eye disease and referring well; competent examination and refraction; records and the PDPA; dispensing; support staff; supervision of provisional and conditional registrants; and communication in a multilingual setting.
It is written for registered optometrists, opticians in the Refraction and Dispensing, Dispensing only and Contact Lens Practitioner categories, provisional and conditional registrants and their supervisors, and practice owners and clinical leads in independent practices, retail chains and hospital eye departments. Singapore case studies show where standards are tested: a parent's request to refract a six-year-old, cosmetic lenses bought online, flashes and floaters booked as a routine refraction, an unreviewed scan, a sales assistant who wrote a prescription, a lapsed practising certificate and a provisional registrant rostered alone.
The final section explains the Board's CPE requirements and practising certificate renewal, how complaints and disciplinary matters are handled under the Act, what the Board can do and how to appeal, and how to respond and remediate well. It complements, and does not repeat, our separate course on ethics for optometrists and opticians.
Course details
- Learning time
- Approximately 2 hours of learning (estimated time including knowledge checks, reflection and assessment)
- Standards covered
- Optometrists and Opticians Act 2007 (ss 3, 13, 15 to 25, 31 and the Schedule); Optometrists and Opticians (Practice, Conduct, Ethics and Publicity) Regulations; OOB Code of Professional Conduct for Optometrists and for Opticians; OOB Professional Practice Guidelines including CPE (articles 5.4 and 6.4); OOB Supervisory Framework; HSA regulation of contact lenses as medical devices; PDPA 2012 and PDPC Advisory Guidelines for the Healthcare Sector (2023); Mental Capacity Act 2008; National Telemedicine Guidelines (2015)
- Format
- Self-paced, gated lessons with knowledge checks, case studies and reflection
- Assessment
- 20 scenario-based questions, 80% to pass (16 of 20)
- Outcome
- Certificate of completion and a written reflection for your learning record
- Alignment
- Mapped to the OOB's registration categories, Code of Professional Conduct, Professional Practice Guidelines and CPE framework; not approved by the Board or any other body
Course curriculum
10 sections · 18 lessons · 2 hours (estimated) · 20-question final assessment
-
1The professional standards framework for eye care in Singapore2 lessons
- The OOB, the Optometrists and Opticians Act and what professional standards mean
- The Board's Code, its guidelines and who regulates what
-
2Registration categories and the practising certificate2 lessons
- Optometrists and the three optician categories: what each may do
- Registration types, practising certificates and staying within your category
-
3Contact lens practice and referral2 lessons
- Contact lens practice: fitting, supply and aftercare
- Recognising eye disease and referring well
-
4Examination, refraction and records2 lessons
- Competent eye examination and refraction in daily practice
- Records, the PDPA, telehealth, AI and closing a practice
-
5Dispensing standards and the practice team2 lessons
- Dispensing and fitting optical appliances to standard
- Unregistered staff, delegation and accountability in the practice team
-
6Supervision, communication and respectful care2 lessons
- Supervising provisional and conditional registrants
- Communicating findings, referrals and safety advice reliably
-
7CPE, renewal and accountability3 lessons
- Continuing professional education and renewing your practising certificate
- When competence, conduct or health is questioned
- Responding well and meeting conditions
-
8Conclusion and key points1 lesson
- Conclusion and key points
-
9References and further reading1 lesson
- References and further reading
-
10Reflection1 lesson
- Your reflective account
Assessment and certificate
Final assessment
20scenario-based questions
- Pass mark 80%: 16 correct out of 20
- Knowledge checks in each section as you go
- Tests whether you can apply the standards, not recall a page
- Not passed yet? Review the sections and retake it
Certificate of completion
A certificate of completion for your learning portfolio.
- Your name, the course title and the estimated learning time (record the time you actually spend)
- Completion date and a unique certificate ID that can be verified
- Ready to download as a PDF as soon as you complete the course
Fitness To Practice
Certificate of Completion
This certifies that
Your Name
has successfully completed
Professional Standards for Optometrists and Opticians
2hours (estimated)
Continuing professional development record — Singapore
Your reflective account
The course includes a structured reflective account template: guided prompts to record what you learned, how you will apply it and how the change will show in your practice. It gives you written evidence of insight after a concern, and a ready record for your CPD portfolio.
Write it in your own words and leave out anything that could identify a patient, a colleague or a case. If you have an open complaint or case, talk to your adviser before reflecting on it in writing.
Questions about this course
Who is this course for?
Optometrists and opticians registered with the Optometrists and Opticians Board in any category, including provisional and conditional registrants, their supervisors, and practice owners and clinical leads in independent practices, retail chains and hospital eye departments.
How is it different from the ethics course for optometrists and opticians?
The ethics course covers values such as honesty, respect and fair dealing in a commercial setting. This course covers the practice standards the Board applies: registration categories and their limits, practising certificates, contact lens practice, referral, examination and records, dispensing, support staff, supervision, CPE and the disciplinary process.
Does it explain what opticians in each category may do?
Yes. It sets out what optometrists and opticians registered for dispensing only, refraction and dispensing, or as contact lens practitioners may do, including the rule that opticians may refract only patients aged eight and above and that only optometrists and contact lens practitioner opticians may prescribe, supply and dispense contact lenses.
Is contact lens aftercare covered?
Yes. A full lesson covers fitting, supply of HSA-registered lenses, instruction, aftercare as defined in the regulations, orthokeratology and cosmetic lenses, and how to respond to a suspected lens complication.
Will it count towards my CPE?
It may count only if the Board or the relevant accreditor accepts it under the Board's rules, so check before relying on it. It explains the current requirements of 50 points for optometrists and 40 for opticians per two-year cycle.
Can it help after a complaint to the Board?
It explains how complaints are handled under the Act, the grounds for disciplinary action, the measures the Board can impose and the route of appeal, and ends with a practical approach to insight and evidenced remediation. If the Board has imposed a condition or required education, check with the Board or your lawyer whether this course would be accepted before enrolling.
How long is it and how is it assessed?
About 2 hours of self-paced learning with seven knowledge checks, case studies and a reflective account, and a final assessment of 20 scenario-based questions with an 80% pass mark.
How this course was built
Official sources only
Every legal and regulatory point comes from primary sources: the Acts that set up each professional board, the boards' own codes and guidance, and the Ministry of Health. Anything we cannot confirm is left out.
Original, edition by edition
Lessons, scenarios and assessment questions are written by us for each edition separately, then checked for accuracy, teaching quality and fair assessment before publication.
Reviewed when rules change
When a code, standard or law changes, the affected courses are reviewed and updated. Reported errors in legal or regulatory facts are corrected first.
Related courses
All coursesProfession-specific standards3 hours
Working Within Your Scope of Practice
Registration types, conditions, titles and credentialing, plus aesthetic, telemedicine and delegation boundaries and safe ways to extend practice in Singapore.
S$125DetailsAdd to cart
Complaints, insight and remediation3 hours
Remediation After a Concern
Turn a concern into a credible remediation plan: precise definition, root-cause analysis, testable objectives, supervision and audit, and an evidence bundle that shows real change.
S$125DetailsAdd to cart
S$952 hours (estimated) · 20 questions
Enrol now