AL Optometry Jurisprudence flashcards
AL Optometry Jurisprudence · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Alabama Board of Optometry
- The state agency that licenses optometrists and enforces the practice act and its administrative rules through investigation, hearings, and sanctions.
- Practice of optometry
- Statutorily defined activity including refraction, ocular evaluation, diagnosis within scope, and prescribing corrective lenses, contact lenses, and authorized therapeutic agents.
- Unlicensed practice
- Examining eyes, prescribing lenses, or dispensing optical devices for compensation without a valid Alabama license, including practice on an expired license.
- Board disciplinary sanctions
- Penalties the Board may impose after a hearing, including reprimand, probation, suspension, revocation, and civil penalties, sometimes with practice conditions.
- License renewal cycle
- The fixed periodic schedule set by the Board on which a license expires and must be renewed with fee, application, and continuing education attestation.
- Continuing education requirement
- The number of approved credit hours a licensee must complete each renewal cycle, including any Board-mandated topic hours, documented by certificates.
- Approved CE provider
- A provider whose courses are recognized by the Board or an accrediting body; hours from unapproved providers generally do not count toward renewal.
- Late renewal
- Renewal filed after expiration, which typically requires additional fees and proof of continuing education before the license is reinstated.
- CE record retention
- The obligation to keep continuing education certificates for the period set by Board rule so they can be produced if the licensee is audited.
- Standard of care
- The level of care a reasonably prudent optometrist would provide in similar circumstances; departure from it can support negligence or discipline.
- Scope of practice
- The statutory boundary of permitted activities, including refraction, diagnosis, and prescribing only those devices and agents the licensee is authorized to use.
- Duty to refer
- The obligation to refer or co-manage when a condition exceeds the optometrist's scope or competence, with timely referral supporting the standard of care.
- Delegation limits
- Rules restricting which tasks may be assigned to ancillary staff; the licensed optometrist remains responsible for all delegated acts.
- Therapeutic prescribing authority
- The statutory and rule-based list of drugs and schedules an optometrist may prescribe, limited to authorized agents for legitimate clinical purposes.
- Prescription elements
- Required content of a prescription: patient identification, drug, strength, quantity, directions, date, and prescriber identification.
- Controlled substance compliance
- The obligation to follow state and federal controlled-substance law, including registration and prescription-monitoring requirements where they apply.
- Prescribing without examination
- Issuing a prescription absent an appropriate evaluation establishing a clinical basis; recognized as unprofessional conduct and a disciplinary ground.
- Patient record retention
- The requirement to keep a legible record of each encounter for the period set by Board rule and state law, sufficient for another practitioner to follow.
- Confidentiality
- The duty to protect patient health information from unauthorized disclosure, with release generally requiring authorization or a legal exception such as subpoena.
- Informed consent
- Patient agreement after disclosure of the procedure's nature, material risks, alternatives, and the opportunity to ask questions and decline.
- Record alteration
- Changing a patient record without documented, dated, attributed correction; altering records to conceal error is a serious disciplinary offense.
- Patient record access
- The patient's right to obtain copies of their record, subject to fees limited by law and rule, and to authorize release to others.
- Disciplinary grounds
- Conduct supporting Board action, including fraud, incompetence, impairment, unprofessional conduct, and violation of the practice act or rules.
- Board hearing process
- The sequence of complaint intake, investigation, notice of charges, hearing, findings, and sanctions, with notice and an opportunity to be heard.
- Impairment
- Practice while impaired by drugs or alcohol, or failure to comply with an impairment program, which is a recognized ground for discipline.
- Duty to cooperate
- The licensee's obligation to respond to Board inquiries and investigations; failure to cooperate or false statements are independently sanctionable.
- Truthful advertising
- The requirement that advertising about services, credentials, and fees be accurate and not misleading, with material conditions of offers disclosed.
- Fee-splitting prohibition
- The bar on sharing patient-care fees with non-licensees for referrals, and on compensation tied to referral volume rather than services rendered.
- Bait-and-switch advertising
- Advertising an offer that is not genuinely available in order to attract patients and substitute a different, usually costlier, service.
- Optical dispensing arrangements
- Business relationships with optical dispensers that must comply with statutory and rule restrictions on ownership, control, and fee sharing.
- Referral incentives
- Financial rewards tied to patient referrals, which raise ethical and disciplinary exposure because referrals should be based on patient need.
- Discount disclosure
- The requirement that advertised discounts and coupons accurately describe the usual fee and the true scope of the offer.