what is an optician?

Opticians are health-care professionals who:

• dispense vision appliances, such as eyeglasses and contact lenses
• use specialized skills, knowledge, and feedback from clients to determine what eyewear best suits their needs.

Licensed Dispensing Opticians must meet standards of practice and training, commit to ongoing education, hold insurance and are held to these standards by the Nova Scotia College of Dispensing Opticians.

Use of reserved titles

In Nova Scotia, only opticians who are registered with NSCDO can legally call themselves:

• “Optician”
• “Contact lens fitter” (NOTE: An optician must complete additional training and hold an additional licence to use the title of “contact lens fitter”)

and all titles derived from these titles, such as “student optician,” “student contact lens fitter”.