New South Wales Repealed Acts

This legislation has been repealed.

OPTOMETRISTS ACT 1930 - SECT 15

15 Removal of name on account of misconduct

(1) Where a registered optometrist:

(a) has been convicted, either in New South Wales of an indictable offence, or elsewhere of an offence which, if committed in New South Wales, would be an indictable offence, or

(b) has been adjudged by the board, after inquiry as hereinafter provided, to have been guilty of misconduct in any professional respect,

the board may reprimand or caution such person or may remove his or her name from the register or suspend his or her registration for such period as the board shall think fit.

(2) Without limiting the meaning of the expression “misconduct in any professional respect” in this section, a registered optometrist shall be deemed guilty of such misconduct who:

(a) save in such cases or in such circumstances as are prescribed, practises optometry in a name other than his or her own except whilst he or she is acting as the duly appointed locum tenens of another registered optometrist,

(b) allows the use of his or her name in connection with the practice of optometry at premises at which he or she or his or her duly appointed locum tenens is not in regular attendance for the purpose of practice and supervision during the hours in which such premises are open for the practice of optometry,

(c) advertises, or otherwise solicits for optometrical business, in contravention of the regulations,

(e) is an habitual drunkard or is habitually addicted to any deleterious drug.

(3) For the purposes of this section, no person shall be deemed to be a duly appointed locum tenens unless:

(a) he or she is appointed in writing by a registered optometrist,

(b) he or she is a registered optometrist at the time of taking up his or her duties, and

(c) he or she is employed only during the temporary absence of his or her employer and for a period not exceeding twelve months or for such further period as the board may in any particular case permit.

A registered optometrist who is engaged in the practice of optometry as a member of a partnership shall, subject to the foregoing provisions of this subsection, be entitled to appoint his or her partner or one of his or her partners as his or her locum tenens.

(4) In the case of a conviction as aforesaid, no person shall have his or her name removed from the register or have his or her registration suspended on account thereof if such offence does not, either from its trivial nature or from the circumstances under which it was committed, render such person unfit in the public interest to practise optometry.

(5) In making any such inquiry, the board shall sit as in open court, and the person charged shall be afforded an opportunity of defence either in person or by counsel.

(6) Whenever the registration of an optometrist is suspended under the provisions of this section, the registrar shall enter in the register a memorandum of that fact and of the date and cause thereof.