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Aipedia: Optometrists and opticians
AI tools can estimate how a child's myopia is likely to progress and help compare management options, but the optometrist must decide what to recommend and explain it to parents. Myopia management decisions run for years, so weak consent or records can surface long after the first appointment.
Part of: AI in Optometrists and opticians
In short
Myopia management tools use measurements such as refraction, axial length, age and family history to predict progression and compare interventions. Under the GOC Standards of Practice, effective 1 January 2025, the optometrist must apply professional judgement to that data (7.8), work within scope (6.1) and obtain valid consent (3), which for children usually involves a parent or guardian. The College of Optometrists' draft 2026 Guidance for Professional Practice includes updates on myopia management alongside a new AI section; final text is due in winter 2026. Claims are most likely where progression is not monitored, options were not explained or a prediction was presented as certain.
Myopia management may be a significant service in some practices. AI and modelling tools sit at several points in the pathway. Progression calculators estimate future refraction or axial length from current measurements, age and risk factors. Some platforms compare predicted outcomes under different management options, such as myopia control spectacle lenses or contact lenses. Others track measurements over time and flag a child whose progression is faster than expected.
These tools are helpful for structuring conversations with parents and for monitoring. They are also prone to being read as precise forecasts. A prediction is a statistical estimate based on population data, and an individual child may progress faster or slower.
These duties apply whether or not AI is involved:
The College of Optometrists consulted in summer 2026 on a fifth edition of its Guidance for Professional Practice that includes updates on myopia management and a new section on AI and new technologies. The detail of the myopia changes has not been published, and the final edition is due in winter 2026, so check it when it appears.
Illustrative scenario: a practice uses a progression tool that shows a parent a chart of their child's predicted refraction with and without treatment. The parent understands the chart as a guarantee and agrees to treatment. Follow-up appointments are booked by an automated recall that fails when the family moves address. Two years later the child's myopia has progressed more than the chart suggested and no one has reviewed the plan. The parent complains that the outcome was promised and that monitoring stopped.
Other risks include entering inaccurate measurements, using a tool on a child outside the population it was designed for, failing to explain that a prediction is uncertain, and not documenting why a particular option was recommended or declined.
Complaints and claims in myopia management are likely to centre on consent, expectations and monitoring rather than on a single clinical error. A record showing what was explained, how uncertainty was described, what the parent chose and how follow-up was arranged is the main defence. GOC Standard 12.2 requires adequate professional indemnity with continuous cover and run-off. A claim about advice informed by a prediction tool is usually treated as a claim about the optometrist's judgement and advice, subject to the policy terms. Disputes about fees or product performance may fall outside PI, depending on the wording.
You can reduce the risk with these steps:
Related: telling patients about AI, AI in contact lens fitting, GOC and College AI guidance and the optical AI hub.
Apex arranges PI for optometrists and practices offering myopia management. A broker can check how your policy treats advice informed by prediction tools; see our optometrist PI guide.
Yes, if you explain it properly. Make clear that it is an estimate based on population data, that individual children vary and that monitoring is needed. Record the explanation, because consent under Standard 3 depends on what the parent understood.
For a young child, valid consent under Standard 3 usually comes from a parent or guardian, with the child involved as appropriate to their age. Older children may be able to take part more fully. Explain options, benefits, limits and follow-up needs.
The College's consultation on the fifth edition of its Guidance for Professional Practice, which closed on 3 August 2026, included updates on myopia management. The detail has not been published; the final edition is due in winter 2026.
It can be. If a child on a management plan is not reviewed and progression goes unaddressed, the practice may face a complaint or claim. Automated recalls should be backed by checks for overdue patients and a clear record of attempts to contact the family.
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