Kentucky Administrative Regulations
Title 201 - GENERAL GOVERNMENT CABINET
Chapter 20 - Board of Nursing
Section 201 KAR 20:215 - Continuing competency requirements
Universal Citation: 201 KY Admin Regs Service 20:215
Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, March 1, 2024
RELATES TO: KRS 194A.540, 218A.205(3)(i), 314.011(12), 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. 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.
(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
d. Offered by a
provider approved pursuant to
201 KAR
20:220.
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)
Advanced practice registered nurses who do not have a Collaborative Agreement
for Advanced Practice Registered Nurse's Prescriptive Authority for Controlled
Substances (CAPA-CS) pursuant to
KRS
314.042(10) or a waiver and
registration issued by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)
to prescribe buprenorphine for the treatment of opioid use disorder shall earn
a minimum of five (5) contact hours in pharmacology.
(b) Advanced practice registered nurses with
a Collaborative Agreement for Advanced Practice Registered Nurse's Prescriptive
Authority for Controlled Substances (CAPA-CS) pursuant to
KRS
314.042(10) who do not have
a waiver and registration issued by the DEA to prescribe buprenorphine for the
treatment of opioid use disorder shall earn a minimum of five (5) contact hours
in pharmacology, including at least one and one-half (1.5) contact hours on the
dual subjects of pharmacology and either pain management or addiction
disorders.
(c) Advanced practice
registered nurses who have a waiver and registration issued by the DEA to
prescribe buprenorphine for the treatment of opioid use disorder shall earn:
1. A minimum of five (5) contact hours
annually in pharmacology, of which one and one-half (1.5) pharmacology hours
shall be on the dual subjects of addiction disorders and pharmacology;
and
2. An additional two and
one-half (2.5) contact hours annually on addiction disorders.
(d) 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.
(e) Objectives for the
contact hours related to pharmacology shall be identified. Casual mention of
medications or medical treatments shall not qualify.
(2) Sexual assault nurse examiners shall earn
the continuing education required by
201
KAR 20:411, Section 8.
(3) 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.
(4) 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 (6) of this section on or before July 1, 2023.
(5) 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 requirements in subsection (6) of this section within
three (3) years of licensure.
(6)
(a) 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:
1. Chronic toxic stress and
secondary traumatic stress potentially increasing the incidence of suicide
amongst nurses;
2. 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;
3. Systems of care,
evidence-informed approaches, and best practices to reduce suicide rates;
and
4. Ethical legal considerations
of caring for patients and nurses who are suicidal.
(b) Nurses shall earn a minimum of one and
one-half (1.5) contact hours in implicit bias that addresses:
1. The impact of historical racism and other
forms of invidious discrimination on the provision of healthcare;
2. Methods of evaluating the presence and
extent of implicit bias; and
3.
Measures that may be taken to reduce implicit bias.
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", 9/2005;
(b) "Nursing
Continuing Education Employment Evaluation Form", 6/2021; and
(c) "Preceptor Continuing Education
Verification Form", 6/2021.
(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/legalopinions/Pages/laws.aspx .
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 218A.205(3)(i), 314.073, 314.131(1), (2)
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Kentucky may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google
Privacy Policy and
Terms of Service apply.
