Student OO fined £1,800

A student optometrist has been fined £1,800 by a fitness to practise committee of the General Optical Council (GOC) after creating and submitting false records to his assessor for a work-based assessment.

While working as a pre-reg optometrist, Ghufran Abubakar falsified records as evidence of 10 relevant patient episodes to demonstrate his competence. Claiming that 'honesty and trustworthiness lie at the heart of what it is to be a professional', the committee found Abubakar's fitness to undertake training as an optometrist impaired.

Having admitted his actions, the Council determined that the appropriate punishment for Abubakar, who had not been able to register for five months because of the proceedings against him, was a financial penalty.