South Australian Numbered Acts South Australian Numbered Acts (1) In this Act,
unless the contrary intention appears—
"appropriate register" means—
(a) the
register of optometrists; or
(b) the
optometry student register,
as the case may require;
"beneficiary" includes an object of a discretionary trust;
"Board" means the Optometry Board of South Australia;
"corporate or trustee optometry services provider"—see
subsection (5);
"cosmetic contact lenses" means contact lenses that are not designed to
correct, remedy or relieve a defect of vision of the wearer;
"director" of a body corporate means a member of the board or committee of
management of the body corporate, whether validly appointed or not;
"District Court" means the Administrative and Disciplinary Division of the
District Court;
"drug" means a poison within the meaning of the Controlled Substances
Act 1984 ;
"equipment" includes appliances, instruments, dressings or substances used for
the purposes of optometry;
"exempt provider" means—
(a) a
recognised hospital, incorporated health centre or private hospital within the
meaning of the South Australian Health Commission Act 1976 ; or
(b) any
other person declared by the regulations to be an exempt provider for the
purposes of this Act;
"inspector" means a person authorised by the Board to exercise the powers of
an inspector under this Act;
"legal practitioner" means a person admitted and enrolled as a practitioner of
the Supreme Court of South Australia;
"medical practitioner" means a person who is registered as a
medical practitioner under the law of this State;
"nominated contact address" of a registered person means an address nominated
by the person for the purpose of service of notices and documents under this
Act;
"ophthalmologist" means a person who is registered on the specialist register
under the Medical Practice Act 2004 as a specialist in ophthalmology;
"optical appliance" means—
(a) an
appliance that is designed to correct, remedy or relieve a defect of vision;
or
"optometrist" means a person who is registered on the register of optometrists
under this Act;
"optometry services provider" means a person (not being an optometrist) who
provides optometry treatment through the instrumentality of an optometrist but
does not include an exempt provider;
"optometry student" means a person who is registered on the
optometry student register;
"optometry student register"—see Part 3 Division 1;
"optometry treatment" or "optometry" means—
(a) the
prescription of optical appliances; and
(b) the
prescription, supply or administration of drugs—
(i)
for the purpose of diagnosing or treating abnormalities
or disorders of the eye; or
(ii)
in connection with the prescription of
optical appliances; and
(c) all
diagnostic, therapeutic, health or other services or advice not referred to in
a preceding paragraph provided in the course of practice by an optometrist or
a person who holds himself or herself out, or is held out by another, as an
optometrist;
"provide", in relation to optometry treatment, means provide treatment
personally or through the instrumentality of another, and includes offer to
provide;
"psychologist" means a person who is registered as a psychologist under the
law of this State;
"record" means—
(a) a
documentary record; or
(b) a
record made by an electronic, electromagnetic, photographic or optical
process; or
(c) any
other kind of record;
"register" means a register kept under this Act;
"register of optometrists"—see Part 3 Division 1;
"registered person" means a person who is registered on a register kept under
this Act;
"Registrar" means the person holding or acting in the office of Registrar of
the Board;
"repealed Act" means the Optometrists Act 1920 ;
"representative body" means a body that is declared by the regulations to be a
representative body for the purposes of this Act;
"therapeutic drugs authorisation" means an authorisation under
section 33;
"unprofessional conduct" includes—
(a)
improper or unethical conduct in relation to professional practice; and
(b)
incompetence or negligence in relation to the provision of optometry
treatment; and
(c) a
contravention of or failure to comply with—
(i)
a provision of this Act; or
(ii)
a code of conduct or professional standard prepared or
endorsed by the Board under this Act; and
(d)
conduct that constitutes an offence punishable by imprisonment for 1 year
or more under some other Act or law.
(2) A reference in
this Act to "unprofessional conduct" extends to—
(a)
unprofessional conduct committed before the commencement of this Act; and
(b)
unprofessional conduct committed within or outside South Australia or the
Commonwealth.
(3) A reference in
this Act to "engaging in conduct" includes a reference to failing or refusing
to engage in conduct.
(4) Without limiting
the generality of the expression, a person who is not an optometrist will be
taken to "provide optometry treatment through the instrumentality of an
optometrist if that person, in the course of carrying on a business, provides
services to the optometrist for which the person is entitled to receive a
share in the profits or income of the optometrist's practice of optometry.
(5) For the purposes
of this Act—
(a) a
"corporate optometry services provider" is an optometry services provider that
is a body corporate and a person occupies a
"position of authority" in such a provider if the person—
(i)
is a director of the body corporate; or
(ii)
exercises, or is in a position to exercise, control or
substantial influence over the body corporate in the conduct of its affairs;
or
(iii)
manages, or is to manage, the business of the body
corporate that consists of the provision of optometry treatment; or
(iv)
where the body corporate is a proprietary
company—is a shareholder in the body corporate; and
(b) a
"trustee optometry services provider" is a person acting as an
optometry services provider in the capacity of trustee of a trust and a
person occupies a "position of authority" in such a provider if the person is
a trustee or beneficiary of the trust.
(6) For the purposes
of this Act, a person occupies a "position of authority in a body corporate
other than a corporate optometry services provider if the person—
(a) is a
director of the body corporate; or
(b)
exercises, or is in a position to exercise, control or substantial influence
over the body corporate in the conduct of its affairs; or
(c)
where the body corporate is a proprietary company—is a shareholder in
the body corporate.
(7) However—
(a) a
minor who is a shareholder in a proprietary company, or a beneficiary under a
trust, is not, for that reason, to be regarded as a person
occupying a "position of authority"; and
(b) a
charitable organisation that is a beneficiary of a trust is not, for that
reason, to be regarded as occupying a "position of authority .
(8) For the purposes
of this Act, a person who holds more than 10 per cent of the issued share
capital of a public company will be regarded as a person
occupying a "position of authority" in that company.