Optometry in Newfoundland & Labrador.Providing the public with eye care.
Optometrists are university-educated, primary health care practitioners who examine, diagnose, treat and manage vision and vision-related diseases and disorders. Optometrists are also involved in health-care research, education activities, and the promotion of eye and health safety.
Our Mission.To protect the public.
The Newfoundland and Labrador College of Optometrists (NLCO) is the regulatory and licensing body for the profession of optometry in Newfoundland and Labrador. The College is also responsible for the establishment, maintenance and enforcement of Standards of Practice, competency skills and the NLCO Code of Ethics to ensure that optometrists practice their profession in the best interests of the public. This is achieved with the Optometry Act of 2012, Optometry Regulations, Code of Ethics and By-Laws.
What we Do.Regulation of the profession.
The Newfoundland and Labrador College of Optometrists is committed to serve the public by governing our members in a manner that protects and serves the public interest, provide direction to and regulate the profession of optometry, establish and enforce a Code of Ethics, establish and enforce standards of practice, establish and enforce registration requirements and exercise the duties and responsibilities practiced by self-governing colleges..
Optometrists’ Scope of Practice Expanded to Include Glaucoma
JULY 2, 2021Provincial regulations have been amended to expand the scope of practice for optometrists to include the treatment and management of patients diagnosed with glaucoma.
Under the amended Diagnostic and Therapeutic Drug Regulations, 2012 of the Optometry Act 2012, optometrists’ scope of practice will now include the diagnosis, management and treatment of glaucoma, commensurate with formal education and training. The Provincial Government continues to work closely with the Newfoundland and Labrador College of Optometrists as these regulations come into force, and the changes reflect the scope of practice in other jurisdictions across Canada.
These regulations support the Provincial Government’s intent to improve patients’ access to health care. The Department of Health and Community Services continues to work to improve the scope of practice for health care providers in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Through these changes, it is our intent to enable and support optometrists as they address glaucoma throughout the province, resulting in more accessible health care for residents
Optometrists can now practice to their full scope by treating and managing glaucoma as well as many other ocular diseases. As primary eye care providers in Newfoundland and Labrador, the public will now have better access to services in a timely manner. The College looks forward to continuing its work with all other departments of health care to improve patient outcomes.