A General Optical Council fitness to practise committee has cleared optometrist Siobhan Higham of misconduct after alleging she failed to diagnose a patient's retinal detachment.
The allegations arose from a patient visit in 2010, at which a man complained of partial loss of vision - likened to a smudge on his spectacles. The committee said the registrant carried out an examination but failed to undertake tests warranted by the symptoms. Higham recorded that the patient's symptoms were vascular related.
The committee heard that due to reasons beyond the registrant's control, the patient was not given a timely appointment and his vision deteriorated. The detached retina was eventually diagnosed by Moorfields Eye Hospital, who operated the day after.
In reaching its conclusion, the committee said it took into account the fact that the patient's symptoms were potentially indicative of a number of ocular conditions and that Higham's tests focused on the central retina due the presented symptoms and patient history.
It added that requirements for misconduct were stringent, particularly in single incidents, but it was not satisfied that these had been met.