OO cleared of charge

Hartlepool-based Maxwell, who has been practising for 13 years, denied the charge, which comprised practising while unregistered, making an inappropriate comment to a patient and failing to provide a patient with a prescription.
Maxwell admitted to being unregistered, but denied the remaining particulars.
He was first registered in 1991, but removed from the Register on May 31, 2001 after having failed to pay his fee. He was not restored until March 26, 2003 Ð a period of 22 months.
Maxwell claimed that due to a difficult time in his personal life he had transferred responsibility for bill paying to an employee, who had failed to maintain his registration.
When asked why he had not checked this, he said he had had 'other things' on his mind. He added that as soon as he had been made aware he was not registered he had rectified the situation immediately. 'It was just confusion Ð a mistake was made. I just assumed I was registered. It's my fault entirely.'
He did not contest two charges of testing while unregistered, but denied a further one and all information regarding a third patient. Patient C, an elderly woman, had been examined by the optometrist, but he claimed it had not amounted to a sight test and therefore issued no prescription.
He did not lodge a GOS form for the appointment nor charge a private test fee. Maxwell said he had expected the patient to return for an examination at a later date, when he would have provided a prescription.
The remaining particular was denied by Maxwell and found to be unsubstantiated by the committee. Patient C said he had been 'aggressive and rude' and commented that the ophthalmologist who had performed her cataract surgery had 'made a bodged job' of the operation. This distressed Patient C and led to a complaint being made against Maxwell. He said there were a number of points in her statement which were factually incorrect, denied the claims about his attitude and said the surgeon had 'done an excellent job'.
The committee ruled that registration was a 'very important matter' but found Maxwell's alleged behaviour fell short of serious professional misconduct. Optometrist Stuart Maxwell was found not guilty of serious professional misconduct at a GOC disciplinary meeting last week.
Hartlepool-based Maxwell, who has been practising for 13 years, denied the charge, which comprised practising while unregistered, making an inappropriate comment to a patient and failing to provide a patient with a prescription.
Maxwell admitted to being unregistered, but denied the remaining particulars.
He was first registered in 1991, but removed from the Register on May 31, 2001 after having failed to pay his fee. He was not restored until March 26, 2003 Ð a period of 22 months.
Maxwell claimed that due to a difficult time in his personal life he had transferred responsibility for bill paying to an employee, who had failed to maintain his registration.
When asked why he had not checked this, he said he had had 'other things' on his mind. He added that as soon as he had been made aware he was not registered he had rectified the situation immediately. 'It was just confusion Ð a mistake was made. I just assumed I was registered. It's my fault entirely.'
He did not contest two charges of testing while unregistered, but denied a further one and all information regarding a third patient. Patient C, an elderly woman, had been examined by the optometrist, but he claimed it had not amounted to a sight test and therefore issued no prescription.
He did not lodge a GOS form for the appointment nor charge a private test fee. Maxwell said he had expected the patient to return for an examination at a later date, when he would have provided a prescription.
The remaining particular was denied by Maxwell and found to be unsubstantiated by the committee. Patient C said he had been 'aggressive and rude' and commented that the ophthalmologist who had performed her cataract surgery had 'made a bodged job' of the operation. This distressed Patient C and led to a complaint being made against Maxwell. He said there were a number of points in her statement which were factually incorrect, denied the claims about his attitude and said the surgeon had 'done an excellent job'.
The committee ruled that registration was a 'very important matter' but found Maxwell's alleged behaviour fell short of serious professional misconduct.