Customer Services
Optical - Scotland |
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Freedom of Information Act (Scotland)
Introduction  How
much does it cost? How
is the information made available? or information can be printed from this website. If you have
queries about our scheme please contact: The Professional Services
Manager Your
Rights to Information |
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| • This
scheme uses the model publication scheme prepared by Optometry Scotland
and approved by the Scottish Information Commissioner. Optometry Scotland
speaks for the optical profession as a whole in Scotland and is actively
supported by all the peer group and professional organisations representing
optometrists and dispensing opticians in Scotland and throughout the
UK. In formulating the model publication scheme Optometry Scotland took
into account the views of optometrists with detailed day to day knowledge
of the workings of optical practices and about information that is not
patient confidential. Their input was central to the development work. • Section 23 (3) of the Act states that in adopting and reviewing its publication scheme the GOS provider (the authority) must have regard to the public interest in: (a) allowing public access to information held by it and in particular to information which: (i) relates to the provision of services by it, the cost to it of providing them or the standards attained by services so provided; or (ii) consists of facts, or analyses, on the basis of which decisions of importance to the public have been made by it; (b) the publication of reasons for decisions made by it. • From January
1st 2005 the Act will oblige optometrists to respond to requests about the
NHS related information that they hold, and it will create a right of access
to that information subject to certain exemptions listed in the Act. Our responsibility All members of staff who have contact with customers or patients will be made aware of their responsibilities under the Act, where members of the public can access the publication scheme and the information it may refer to. Feedback The Professional
Services Manager |
| Classes
of Information The information in this Scheme is grouped into the following classes: 1) Who we are Asda Stores Ltd is part of Wal Mart, the most successful retailer in the world. Asda has 265 stores across the country, offering customers fantastic products at every day low prices. Asda opened its first Opticians in 2000 as its commitment to providing a professional, community based eye care service at great value prices. We now have Opticians in 65 of our stores, providing a full range of eye care services from eye tests, spectacle dispensing and fitting and contact lens fitting and aftercare. Details of the Dispensing Opticians, Contact Lens Opticians and Optometrists employed in our Opticians can be obtained by contacting the department directly. Additionally, details of all Dispensing Opticians, Contact Lens Opticians and Optometrists registered in the UK are available from the General Optical Council Tel: 0207 5803898. Asda Opticians
is part of Asda Stores Ltd, Great Wilson Street, Southbank, Leeds LS11
5AD. Our registration number is 464777. |
Opening times can vary between locations, so please call to confirm. We work within the regulations as laid down by the General Optical Council, the Terms of Service for General Ophthalmic Services, and the requirements of clinical governance. Our optometrists and dispensing opticians are expected to be conversant with the peer group guidance issued by the College of Optometrists and Association of British Dispensing Opticians respectively, and to attain sufficient annual credits to comply with the voluntary scheme for Continuing Education and Training. 3) Financial
and funding information If you are not eligible for the NHS eye test, please contact your local store for details of our current charges. Full details of the company accounts are available by application to our Home office – The Professional
Services Manager 4) Information on eyecare for the public A complete set of information about optical and ocular conditions, eye tests, glasses, and contact lenses, can be found from the following sources; The
College of Optometrists |
| www.eyecare-information-service.org.uk
Some of this information is also available in patient leaflets. These are freely available from all our practice(s). To request a set of leaflets by post, please contact: Professional
Services Manager 5) Complaints A hard copy of our complaints policy is available on request from: Professional
Services Manager If you are still unable to resolve any complaint you have recourse to: The Optical
Consumer Complaints Service If you think that we have failed to provide information, we again recommend that you discuss the problem with the store concerned. If you are still not satisfied, you can complain to the Scottish Information Commissioner who oversees the Act and whose contact details are: Kevin Dunion
OBE From 1st
January 2005, when the general right of access comes into force, there
will be a formal appeal mechanism when information is withheld. Further
details on this will be available on the Scottish Information Commissioner’s
website at www.itspublicknowledge.info before
this date. 6) Our policies and procedures A hard copy of our policies on Data Protection and Health and Safety are available on request from: Professional
Services Manager |
7) Information management policies In this class we will publish the criteria on which our information management policies are made and a referral point for all enquires regarding information management generally in practice. Cost of Information There is
no charge for retrieving and locating information under the scheme
and, for the most part, we will only charge for hard copies, or copies
onto media. Charges are as follows and will be reviewed regularly.
Websites: Publications: Copyright: |