Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 490-4-.02 - Continuing Competence Requirements
(1) The Georgia State Board of Physical
Therapy requires each licensed physical therapist and physical therapist
assistant to participate in thirty (30) clock hours of experience per licensure
period which is not to exceed ten (10) credit hours per calendar day. The
purpose of this requirement is to assist in assuring safe and effective
practices in the provision of physical therapy services to the citizens of
Georgia.
(a) The Board recommends the
requirements for competence as planned learning experiences which have content
beyond the licensee's present level of knowledge and competence which may be
subject to audit by the board.
(b)
Content of the experience must relate to patient care in physical therapy
whether the subject is research, treatment, documentation, education,
management, or some other content area.
(c) In the event that a licensee does not
meet the continuing competence requirement, the license will not be
renewed.
(2) Effective
July 1, 2018, (30) hours of continuing competence per biennium shall include a
minimum of four (4) contact hours specifically in Georgia Ethics and
Jurisprudence as defined in the Georgia Physical Therapy Act or by passage of
the Georgia Ethics and Jurisprudence Examination.
(a) A Georgia Ethics and Jurisprudence course
must be obtained from a Georgia college or university with an accredited
physical therapy education program or a provider which holds a current Physical
Therapy Association of Georgia (PTAG) Approval Certificate for the
course.
(b) Passage of the Georgia
Ethics and Jurisprudence Examination is equivalent to the four (4) hour
continuing competence requirement for Georgia Ethics and Jurisprudence provided
that the same test result has not been previously submitted to the Board as
part of an application for licensure or to satisfy the requirements of an order
of the Board.
(3) The
following programs and activities may be considered for approval, but are not
limited to:
(a) Programs approved by the
American Physical Therapy Association and its affiliate components;
or
(b) Programs approved by the
Physical Therapy Association of Georgia or any other state chapters;
or
(c) Programs approved by the
Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (Procert); or
(d) Programs provided at CAPTE-Accredited
colleges and universities with programs in physical therapy when the continuing
competency course is held under the auspices of the school of physical therapy;
or
(e) Programs offered by similar
professional organizations offering experiences that meet the guidelines set
forth in paragraph one.
(f) Fifteen
(15) hours for undergoing a peer review; or
(g) Ten (10) hours for conducting a peer
review when that activity is an adjunct responsibility and not the primary
employment; or
(h) Participation as
a presenter for continuing education courses, workshops, seminars or symposia
which have been approved by the approved list above; Continuing competence
credit is based on contact hours and may not exceed 10 hours per
topic;
(i) Authorship of a
presented scientific poster, scientific platform presentation or published
article; Continuing competence credit is 10 hours per even and may not exceed
20 hours;
(j) Teaching a physical
therapist or physical therapist assistant credit course when that teaching is
an adjunct responsibility and not the primary employment; Continuing competence
credit is based on contact hours not to exceed 20 hours;
(k) Certification of clinical specialization
by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties. Continuing competence
credit is 30 hours and is recognized only in the biennium in which
certification or recertification is awarded.
(l) Self - instruction from reading
professional literature; Continuing competence credit is limited to a maximum
of three (3) hours; or
(m)
Attendance at a scientific poster session, lecture, panel, symposium or
university course Continuing competence credit is one hour per contact hour of
activity; or
(n) Acting as a
clinical education instructor for an accredited physical therapist or physical
therapist assistant educational program; Continuing competence credit is one
(1) hour per eight (8) contact hours with a maximum credit of 10 hours;
or
(o) Acting as a clinical
instructor or an intern for a formal, nonacademic, advanced clinical internship
or as a mentor or a learner for a formal, nonacademic mentorship with a maximum
credit of 10 hours.
(p) Donating
time in the role of a Physical Therapist or Physical Therapist Assistant,
within the scope of practice, to a charity event; Continuing competence credit
is one (1) hour per eight (8) contact hours, limited to a maximum of five (5)
hours;
(q) Reference Policy
13
(r) Post professional physical
therapist educational programs that award academic credit are counted as one
(1) university credit hour equaling ten (10) continuing competence hours. For
example, a two (2) credit hour course in which a passing grade is achieved
would equal twenty (20) continuing competence hours.
(4) Unacceptable activities for continuing
competence include, but are not limited to:
(a) Orientation and in-service
programs;
(b) Meetings for purposes
of policy decisions;
(c)
Non-educational meeting at annual association, chapter or organization
meetings;
(d) Entertainment or
recreational meeting or activities;
(e) Committee meetings, holdings of offices,
serving as an organization delegate;
(f) Visiting exhibits;
(g) CPR.
(5) Continuing competence requirements shall
apply within the first biennium that a physical therapist/physical therapist
assistant is licensed in Georgia. However, licensees who have graduated during
the current renewal biennium and who have passed the National Physical Therapy
Examination are exempt from the continuing competence requirement during the
biennium in which they have graduated and successfully passed the
exam.
(6) Beginning the January 1,
2014 through December 31, 2016 biennium and thereafter, persons licensed to
practice as a physical therapist or a physical therapy assistant or who shall
file an application to practice as such in this state are to maintain a record
of completed continuing education courses and experiences by registering with
an online recording and reporting system approved by the Board.
(a) For the purposes of this requirement, the
Georgia State Board of Physical Therapy adopts the utilization of CE
Broker.
(b) Licensees and
applicants shall incur no additional costs from CE Broker for this
service.
(c) Every licensee or
applicant subject to the rules of the Georgia State Board of Physical Therapy
shall be deemed to have given such person's consent to the Board and it's
representatives to access their continuing competence record retained within
the online database for the purposes of auditing and verifying completion of
the Board's continuing competency requirements. Such person waives all
objections to the admissibility of the record in any proceedings or hearings
before the board.
(7)
Individuals licensed during the last six (6) months of a biennium renewal
period will not be required to meet continuing competence requirements for that
biennium.
(8) Individuals who have
been reinstated within the last six (6) months of a biennium renewal period may
use the continuing competence coursework used for reinstatement, thereby making
them exempt from the requirement for that biennium renewal period.
(9) Those licensees selected for audit shall
submit documentation of compliance upon receipt of notice. Acceptable
documentation shall include:
(a) An official
program or outline of the course attended or taught or a copy of the
publication which clearly shows that the objectives and content were related to
patient care in physical therapy and shows the number of contact hours, as
appropriate. The information also should clearly identify the licensee's
responsibility in teaching or authorship; and
(b) A certificate or verification of
completion of home study which identifies the sponsoring entity or maintain a
copy of the final grade report in the case of a University credit course(s), or
specialization certificate, or proof of attendance with a copy of the program
for the other acceptable activities, or documentation of self-instruction or
reading professional literature; or
(c) Verification of a peer review of practice
with verification of acceptable practice by a recognized entity. An example of
a recognized entity is the American Physical Therapy Association Board Policy
(See APTA Policy G03-05-15-40).
(10) Responsibilities of the Licensee:
(a) To maintain the original continuing
competence documents no less than five (5) years from the date the Continuing
Education credit was obtained. These records should be maintained in the
licensee's personal files for no less than five (5) years.
(b) To complete all steps necessary to meet
the re-licensure requirements on or before December 31st of the odd numbered
years.
(c) To provide the Board
with information requested during an audit.
(d) To keep a current mailing address and
email address on file with the Licensing Board Office at all times.
Notes
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