Optometric Practice Reference
The Optometric Practice Reference (OPR) articulates the current regulatory and professional standards of practice for optometry in Ontario and provides voluntary guidelines for practitioners wishing to go beyond the basic requirements.
The OPR is a valuable reference for registrants of the College and is also intended to be a resource for patients, College Committees and the general public. As a living document, it will be updated and new documents will be added on a regular basis.
A modernization project of the OPR was initiated to ensure it is written in a clear, concise, and consistent manner. Goals of the revisions included:
- Reflect current public needs, health care systems, and societal values (e.g., diversity, equity, and inclusion principles)
- Be relevant to current optometry practice and advances in health care sciences and technologies
- Be consistent with current legislative requirements
- Be evidence-based and risk-informed (e.g., from sources such as College data, environmental scans, literature reviews, and stakeholder feedback)
- Ensure clear, concise, and consistent language understood by the profession and public
- Address gaps in content
- Increase accessibility
A summary of changes comparing the previous version of the OPR and the updated version can be viewed here.
On June 13, 2025, Council approved the updated OPR which replaces all previous versions.
For registrants who completed their self-assessments prior to the OPR update, all feedback referenced the prior version of the OPR which can be found here.
If you wish to access older published versions of the OPR, please contact our practice advisors.