Optometry Australia’s response to Scope of Practice Review – Issues Paper 2

Optometry Australia has welcomed the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposals outlined in Issues Paper 2 of the Scope of Practice Review.

Established following a recommendation of the Strengthening Medicare Taskforce Report, the Scope of Practice Review assesses the barriers that prevent Australia’s healthcare practitioners from working to the full extent of their skills and training to deliver best practice primary care.

In October 2023, Optometry Australia provided initial feedback on the second phase of the Review, which can be found here.

With the release of Issues Paper 2, which compiles findings from the second round of consultations and presents eight key recommendations for reform, Optometry Australia has reviewed the paper and submitted our response, offering detailed feedback on the following proposals:

1. National skills and capability framework matrix: This initiative will greatly assist with implementing and coordinating multidisciplinary care programs. To further assist with its utility, we strongly advocate for the matrix to include the capabilities of the top of scope of the professions. Following on from this, the matrix should be regularly updated to keep pace with advancements in technology and practice.
2. Enhanced inter-professional collaboration: The Scope of Practice Review provides some excellent initiatives for primary care however needs further focus on inter-professional collaboration between primary, secondary, and tertiary care to decrease the load on tertiary care. In particular this should include funding models of collaborative care and asynchronous (Store and Forward) telehealth.
3. Independent regulatory body: We support an independent body approach to regulating scope of practice. This body could be tasked with providing assistance to registration boards to assist with progressing change thereby focussing on scope of practice reforms.
4. Simplified legislation for prescribing rights: Reforms to prescribing rights and similar legislation should focus on simplification. This will enable ongoing refinements to be agile and facilitate the utility of the national skills and capability matrix.

Optometry Australia’s response to Issues Paper 2 presents a comprehensive vision for a more collaborative, efficient and technologically integrated workforce, with the ultimate goal of enabling Australia’s health practitioners to work to their fullest scope and potential.

Members interested in further information on the Review or Optometry Australia’s submissions are encouraged to contact policy@optometry.org.au.

Further reading

• Unleashing the potential of optometrists: Scope of Practice Review
• Scope of Practice Review (Phase 1) – Optometry Australia submission