RELATES TO:
KRS
194A.540,
218A.205(3)(i),
314.011(12),
314.042(11),
314.073,
314.991(1)-(3),
620.020(8)
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS
314.131(1), (2), and
314.073 require the Board of
Nursing to promulgate administrative regulations to establish continuing
competency requirements for nurses. This administrative regulation establishes
the fees, procedures, and requirements for continuing competency for
nurses.
Section 1. Definitions.
(1) "Contact hour" means fifty (50) minutes
of an approved, organized learning experience.
(2) "Earning period" means November 1 through
October 31 of a current licensure period.
(3) "Preceptor" means a nurse with
demonstrated competence in a specific clinical area who serves as a role model
and mentor to assist in the development and validation of the competencies of a
nursing student or new employee.
Section 2.
(1) A licensee shall choose a method from
Section 3 of this administrative regulation to validate his or her continued
competency in nursing for each earning period.
(2) A licensee shall maintain the
documentation of the method chosen.
(3) A licensee shall provide the
documentation if directed by the board.
Section 3. Methods for continued competency
validation as established in subsection (1) through (4) of this section shall
be:
(1) Fourteen (14) contact hours of
continuing education, which shall:
(a) Be from
a provider approved by the board pursuant to
201 KAR 20:220;
(b) Be completed during the earning period;
and
(c) Include the continuing
education required by Section 5 of this administrative regulation;
(2) Current national certification
or recertification and the continuing education required by Section 5 of this
administrative regulation. The certification shall be related to the nurse's
practice role and shall:
(a) Have been
initially attained during the earning period;
(b) If issued for a period of time as
evidenced by an expiration date, have been in effect during the entire earning
period; or
(c) Have been
recertified during the earning period;
(3) The continuing education required by
Section 5 of this administrative regulation and at least one (1) of the
following during the earning period:
(a)
Completion of a research project that is nursing-related:
1. As principal investigator, coinvestigator,
or project director;
2. That is
qualitative or quantitative in nature;
3. That utilizes a research
methodology;
4. That increases
knowledge, causes an improved outcome, or changes behavior; and
5. That is evidenced by an abstract of the
project, which includes a summary of the findings;
(b) Publication of an article in a
peer-reviewed health-related journal; or
(c) Participation as a preceptor for at least
one (1) nursing student or new employee:
1.
That has a preceptorship that shall be for at least 120 hours;
2. Requires a one (1) to one (1) relationship
between the preceptor and the student or employee;
3. Authorizes the preceptor to train more
than one (1) student or employee and to combine the hours to total 120 hours;
and
4. Includes that the
preceptorship shall be evidenced by submission of the Preceptor Continuing
Education Verification Form completed by the educational institution or
preceptor's supervisor; or
(4)
(a)
Seven (7) hours of continuing education from a provider approved by the board
pursuant to
201 KAR 20:220 and earned during
the licensure period, which shall include the continuing education required by
Section 5 of this administrative regulation if applicable; and
(b) A nursing employment evaluation that is
satisfactory for continued employment.
1. The
nurse shall submit the Nursing Continuing Education Employment Evaluation Form,
completed and signed by the nurse's supervisor or employer, which shall cover a
period of at least six (6) months during the earning period; or
2. The board may accept from the employer a
standard employee evaluation, which covers a period of at least six (6) months
during the earning period.
(5) Contact hours of continuing education
earned for the methods of continued competency validation as established in
subsection (1) or (4) of this section may earned by:
(a)
1. A
nursing continuing education presentation that is:
a. Designed and developed by the
presenter;
b. Presented to nurses
or other health professionals;
c.
Evidenced by a program brochure, course syllabi, or a letter from the offering
provider identifying the licensee's participation as the presenter of the
offering; and
2. The number of contact hours that may be
earned shall be twice the number of contact hours offered to an attendee of the
presentation; or
(b)
Successful completion of a postlicensure academic course at a college,
university, or postsecondary vocational institution if relevant to nursing
practice as determined by this subsection.
1.
Contact hours shall be calculated as follows:
a. One (1) semester or trimester hour of
academic credit shall equal fifteen (15) contact hours; or
b. One (1) quarter hour of academic credit
shall equal twelve (12) contact hours.
2. The following courses shall be relevant to
nursing practice:
a. A nursing course,
designated by a nursing course number, and beyond the prelicensure curriculum
of the individual licensee; or
b.
An academic course that is applicable to the nurse's role and beyond the
prelicensure curriculum of the individual licensee.
3. A licensee may request course review for
approval of applicable nursing content pursuant to Section 7 of this
administrative regulation.
4. If it
is an academic course in which grades are given, the licensee shall achieve a
grade of "C" or better, or a pass on a pass-fail grading system.
Section 4.
(1) A licensee shall provide documentation of
the method used to validate continued competency if the licensee is the subject
of a disciplinary complaint.
(2) A
licensee shall provide documentation of the method used to validate continued
competency if requested by the board pursuant to a random audit of
licensees.
Section 5.
(1)
(a) An
Advanced Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) shall earn a minimum of five (5)
contact hours in pharmacology, as required by
KRS
314.073(8).
(b) An APRN who is registered with the DEA
and has a PDMP account, as defined by
201 KAR 20:057, Section
1(7),shall earn a minimum of five (5) contact hours in pharmacology, including
at least three (3) contact hours on either pain management or addiction
disorders.
(c) To qualify as
pharmacology pursuant to
KRS
314.073, content shall include drug specific
information, safe prescribing practices, safe medication administration,
prescribing methodologies, new administrative regulations, or similar
topics.
(d) Objectives for the
contact hours related to pharmacology shall be identified. Casual mention of
medications or medical treatments shall not qualify.
(2) After June 27, 2023, and before the
APRN's next scheduled DEA registration, an APRN who has a DEA registration
shall earn a minimum of eight (8) hours on the subject of treating and managing
patients with opioid or other substance use disorders, including the
appropriate clinical use of all drugs approved by the Food and Drug
Administration for the treatment of a substance use disorder.
(3) The following APRNs shall be deemed to
have satisfied the earning requirement in subsection (2) of this section:
(a)
1.
Those who graduated from an advanced practice nursing school within five (5)
years prior to June 27, 2023, and have successfully completed a comprehensive
curriculum that included at least eight (8) hours of training on the subject of
treating and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders,
including the appropriate clinical use of all drugs approved by the Food and
Drug Administration for the treatment of a substance use disorder; or
2.
a. Those
who have satisfied this training by earning a minimum of eight (8) hours of
training on treatment and management of patients with opioid or other substance
use disorders.
b. Past trainings on
the treatment and management of patients with opioid or other substance use
disorders may count towards an APRN meeting this requirement, including past
DATA-Waiver trainings.
(b) In addition to continuing education
providers approved by the board pursuant to
201 KAR 20:220, groups approved
by the DEA or the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA) may provide trainings that satisfy the earning requirement of
subsection (2) of this section.
(4) Sexual assault nurse examiners shall earn
the continuing education required by
201 KAR 20:411, Section
8.
(5) Registered nurses and
licensed practical nurses shall earn, within three (3) years of licensure, a
minimum of one and one-half (1.5) contact hours in pediatric abusive head
trauma as required by
KRS
314.073(6), and a minimum of
three (3) contact hours on domestic violence, and elder abuse, neglect, and
exploitation as required by
KRS
194A.540.
(6) Registered nurses, licensed practical
nurses, and advanced practice registered nurses who hold an active nursing
license on July 1, 2022, shall satisfy the continuing competency requirement in
subsection (8) of this section on or before July 1, 2023.
(7) Registered nurses, licensed practical
nurses, and advanced practice registered nurses who obtain licensure by
examination, endorsement, or reinstatement after July 1, 2022, shall satisfy
the continuing competency requirement in subsection (8) of this section within
three (3) years of licensure.
(8)
Nurses shall earn a minimum of two (2) contact hours on the subject of suicide
prevention, which shall consist of one (1) contact hour on suicide prevention
generally, and one (1) contact hour that addresses:
(a) Chronic toxic stress and secondary
traumatic stress potentially increasing the incidence of suicide amongst
nurses;
(b) A confidential and
standardized pathway to care for nurses that addresses screening, assessing,
safety planning, referrals, and follow-up for nurses at risk for
suicide;
(c) Systems of care,
evidence-informed approaches, and best practices to reduce suicide rates;
and
(d) Ethical legal
considerations of caring for patients and nurses who are suicidal.
Section 6.
(1)
(a) A
licensee shall maintain records to substantiate methods used to validate
competency.
(b) All records shall
be retained for at least five (5) years following the current licensure
period.
(2)
(a) A licensee shall, upon request, furnish
to the board or its staff, legible copies of the records required to be
maintained by subsection (1) of this section, in electronic format to CE
Broker, the continuing education tracking system utilized by the board, via
https://cebroker.com.
(b) Copies shall be furnished within twenty
(20) days of the date a written request is sent to the last known email address
of the licensee or applicant.
(c)
Failure to furnish records as required by this administrative regulation shall
be cause for the issuance of a complaint pursuant to
201 KAR 20:161 for failure to
comply with
KRS
314.073(2).
(3)
(a)
Except as provided by paragraph (b) of this subsection, if a licensee has
failed to comply with the continuing competency requirements, the licensee
shall be allowed to rectify the noncompliance if he or she:
1. Meets the continuing competency
requirements within ten (10) business days of notification of noncompliance;
and
2. Enters a consent decree with
the board pursuant to
201 KAR 20:161, Section 2(5),
within ten (10) days of notification by the board.
(b) The board shall issue a complaint
pursuant to
201 KAR 20:161 if:
1. A licensee fails to furnish records as
requested pursuant to subsection (2) of this section; or
2. There is evidence of fraud or deceit in
procuring or attempting to procure a license to practice
nursing.
(4) A
licensee who attends continuing education activities, whether as a presenter,
participant, or student, shall attend the entire offering to be eligible to
receive the number of contact hours for which the activity has been
approved.
(5) It shall be the
responsibility of each licensee to select and participate in those continuing
education activities that will meet the criteria for acceptable continuing
education.
(6) A licensee shall not
repeat the same continuing education offering within a licensure period. The
board shall determine whether a continued education offering is the same
offering based upon the certificate of attendance from the offering that
includes items such as the activity number, date, topic, and
presenter.
Section 7.
(1) A licensee may request an individual
review of a nonapproved continuing education activity completed during the
earning period if, within thirty (30) days after the expiration of the
immediate past licensure period, the licensee has:
(a) Requested the review by submitting an
Application for Individual Review; and
(b) Paid a fee of ten (10) dollars.
(2) The review shall be based on
generally accepted standards of adult education and shall be applicable to the
nurse's role.
(3) Approval of a
nonapproved continuing education activity shall:
(a) Qualify it as having been obtained from
an approved provider for the licensee requesting the review; and
(b) Be limited to the particular offering
upon which the request for individual review is based.
(4) The board may offer continuing education
hours for programs sponsored by the board. These continuing education hours
shall be found to have been obtained from an approved provider. The board shall
comply with all applicable provider standards.
Section 8. Incorporation by Reference.
(1) The following material is incorporated by
reference:
(a) "Application for Individual
Review", 9/2023;
(b) "Nursing
Continuing Education Employment Evaluation Form", 9/2023; and
(c) "Preceptor Continuing Education
Verification Form", 9/2023.
(2) This material may be inspected, copied,
or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at the Kentucky Board of
Nursing, 312 Whittington Parkway, Suite 300, Louisville, Kentucky 40222-5172,
Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. This material is also available on
the board's Web site at
https://kbn.ky.gov/document-library/Pages/default.aspx.