Current through Register Vol. 51, No. 3, September 1, 2024
RELATES TO:
KRS
311B.020,
311B.150,
311B.100(2),
311B.110,
311B.120,
311B.180,
311B.190
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY:
KRS 311B.050
requires the Board of Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy to promulgate
administrative regulations to establish the procedures for the issuance and
renewal of a license.
KRS
311B.100(2) and
KRS
311B.110(6) require the
board to promulgate administrative regulations to establish the qualifications
for a limited x-ray machine operator. This administrative regulation
establishes the requirements for the licensure of a limited x-ray machine
operator.
Section 1. Applicability.
This administrative regulation shall apply to individuals who perform limited
diagnostic radiography while under the direct supervision or indirect
supervision of a licensed practitioner of the healing arts.
Section 2. Limited Licensee Employment
Prohibition. An individual who holds a limited license shall not be employed as
an operator of a source of radiation at a facility where contrast studies,
fluoroscopy, mammography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance imaging,
bedside radiography, nuclear medicine, positron emission tomography, or
radiation therapy procedures are performed.
Section 3. Pathway to the Limited X-ray
Machine Operator License.
(1) An applicant
shall complete an approved postsecondary educational program that meets the
American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT) Limited X-Ray Machine
Operator Curriculum requirements. An individual shall complete a formal
education program for limited x-ray machine operators approved by the
board.
(2) If an applicant
qualifies for licensure under
KRS
12.245,
12.354,
or
12.357,
the applicant shall submit and satisfy the requirements of Section 5(1) through
(6) of this administrative regulation, and shall submit form DD-214 or other
proof of active or prior military service for the applicant or spouse of the
applicant.
Section 4.
Application for Temporary Limited X-ray Machine Operator License.
(1) An applicant who has completed a formal
educational program shall submit:
(a) A
completed and signed application Form KBMIRT Form 5;
(b) A nonrefundable, non-transferrable
temporary limited x-ray machine operator application and license fee as
mandated in
201 KAR 46:020, Section 5,
unless the fee is waived in accordance with
KRS
311B.140;
(c) The satisfactory results of a criminal
background check completed within the past six (6) months in state of residence
and employment and any other state of residence and employment within the past
five (5) years; and
(d) A copy of a
government-issued photo ID.
(2) The temporary limited x-ray machine
operator license shall be effective for up to one (1) year from date of program
completion and shall not be renewable.
(3) Upon completion of the limited x-ray
machine operator training program, individuals shall:
(a) Apply for the limited scope radiography
exam; and
(b) Submit the
nonrefundable, non-transferrable limited x-ray machine operator examination fee
as mandated in
201 KAR 46:020, Section
9.
(4) An individual
shall successfully pass the American Registry of Radiologic Technologists
(ARRT) administered limited scope radiography exam within one (1) calendar year
of program completion and prior to the expiration date of the temporary
license, except in the case of instances such as, disability, major illness,
accident, or if an active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United
States.
(5) If a temporary licensee
has successfully passed the ARRT administered limited scope radiography exam
prior to the expiration date of the temporary license, the licensee shall be
issued a limited x-ray machine operator license which shall expire on the last
day of the licensee's birth month. If the limited x-ray machine operator
license is first issued to an individual less than six (6) months before the
individual's birth month, the license issued to the individual shall not expire
on that date, but instead it shall expire at the last day of the individual's
birth month in the following calendar year.
Section 5. Application for Initial Limited
X-ray Machine Operator License. An Applicant shall submit:
(1) A completed and signed application,
KBMIRT Form 4;
(2) A nonrefundable
initial application and license fee as established in
201 KAR 46:020, Section 1,
unless the fee is waived in accordance with
KRS
311B.140;
(3) The results of a criminal background
check completed within the past six (6) months in the state of residence and
employment, and any other state of residence and employment within the past
five (5) years;
(4) A copy of
government-issued photo ID;
(5)
Documentation of passing results of the ARRT administered limited scope
radiography exam within one (1) calendar year of program completion, except in
the case of instances such as, disability, major illness, accident, or if an
active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States; and
(6) Verification of graduation from a formal
education program for limited x-ray machine operators approved by the
board.
Section 6. The
issued license shall identify the licensee as a limited x-ray machine operator.
The license shall also identify the category as general, bone densitometry, or
podiatry.
Section 7. Curricular
Standards for Formal Educational Program. This administrative regulation
applies to institutions offering a postsecondary program for limited x-ray
machine operators.
(1) Programs for general
limited x-ray machine operators shall:
(a)
Meet the curricular standards established by the American Society of Radiologic
Technologists (ASRT);
(b) Include a
minimum of 240 classroom hours of didactic instruction and 360 clinical hours
of education which shall include supervised practice and demonstration of
clinical competency;
(c) Supply
data requested for a complete evaluation of its administration, organization,
faculty, physical facilities, student policies, and curriculum;
(d) Provide a structured curriculum with
clearly written course descriptions, lesson plans, and objectives;
(e) Provide an adequate faculty, which shall
be qualified through academic preparation or experience to teach the subjects
assigned;
(f) Have a program
director who is a licensed radiographer with a minimum of three (3) years of
clinical or teaching experience or a combination of clinical and teaching
experience;
(g) Provide a
licensee-to-student ratio consistent with professional educational guidelines
in the appropriate field of practice;
(h) Provide appropriate facilities,
sufficient volume, and a variety of diagnostic exams to properly conduct the
educational program;
(i) Prohibit
students from applying radiation to human beings for diagnostic purposes until
they have obtained practical experience and have had their performance
evaluated as satisfactory by the program faculty;
(j) Provide direct or indirect supervision by
a licensed practitioner of the healing arts or a licensee as required by the
student's level of competency;
(k)
Prohibit students from administering radiation to a human being unless under
direct or indirect supervision as required by the student's level of
competency;
(l) Maintain records of
each student's attendance, grades, clinical competency, and subjects
completed;
(m) Designate a
radiation safety officer; and
(n)
Permit site inspections by the board's representative.
(2) Programs for limited podiatry x-ray
machine operators shall:
(a) Consist of
instruction that reflects current modules of the Examination Content
Specifications - Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography published by the
ARRT. The curriculum shall include items such as:
1. Safety, including radiation physics;
radiation protection, including personnel protection; radiation exposure,
monitoring, and radiation units; biological effects of radiation; low-dose
technique and minimizing patient exposure; applicable federal and state
radiation regulations;
2. Image
Production, including principle of the radiographic equipment; image
acquisition and technical evaluation; equipment operation and quality
assurance; developing and using technique charts; and
3. Patient Care, including patient
interactions and management; and
(b) Consist of at least six (6) months of
clinical experience of foot and ankle limited x-ray procedures while under the
direct supervision of a licensed practitioner of the healing arts, a licensed
radiologic technologist, or a licensed limited x-ray machine
operator.
(3) Programs
for limited bone densitometry x-ray machine operators shall:
(a) Consist of instruction that reflects
current content categories of the Examination Content Specifications - Bone
Densitometry Equipment Operator published by the ARRT. The curriculum shall
include items such as:
1. Patient Care,
including osteoporosis, bone physiology, bone health and patient education, and
patient preparation;
2. Safety,
including fundamental principles, biological effects of radiation, units of
measurement, and radiation protection; and
3. Image Production, including fundamentals
of x-ray production, quality control, measuring and determining quality in bone
mineral density; and
(b)
Consist of at least six (6) months of bone densitometry clinical experience
under the direct supervision of a licensed practitioner of the healing arts, a
licensed radiologic technologist, or a licensed limited x-ray machine
operator.
Section
8. Approved Radiographic Procedures for the Limited X-ray Machine
Operator. An individual who holds a limited license is limited to performing
the procedures authorized for his or her license as described in subsections
(1), (2), and (3) of this section.
(1) An
individual holding a general limited x-ray machine operator license shall
perform only the following:
(a) Radiography of
the thorax, lungs and ribs;
(b)
Radiography of the abdomen;
(c)
Radiography of the skull and facial structures;
(d) Radiography of the upper and lower
extremities;
(e) Radiography of the
pectoral girdle, hips, and pelvis; and
(f) Radiography of the cervical, thoracic,
and lumbar spines.
(2)
An individual holding a limited podiatry x-ray machine operator license shall
perform ra-diographic procedures on the foot and ankle only.
(3) An individual holding a limited bone
densitometry x-ray machine operator license shall perform bone densitometry
radiographic procedures only.
(4) A
limited x-ray machine operator shall comply with the Limited X-ray Machine
Operator Practice Standards as incorporated by reference in
201
KAR 46:035, Section 4.
Section 9. Continuing Education Requirements.
Licensees shall complete and document twelve (12) hours of continuing education
biennually as required by
201 KAR
46:060. A minimum of six (6) hours shall be related to
radiation safety or medical imaging.
Section
10. Continuing Education Audit Process.
(1) The board shall select a sample of
twenty-five (25) percent of limited x-ray machine operator licensees to audit
for continuing education compliance annually.
(2) The board shall send each licensee
selected for audit a notification of audit.
(3) Each licensee shall maintain his or her
personal files such as certificates or records of credit from approved
continuing education programs from the current biennium and immediate prior
biennium.
(4) A licensee selected
for audit shall complete KBMIRT Form 8, as incorporated by reference in
201 KAR
46:060, and provide the board with a copy of his or
her certificates or records of completion.
(5) Failure to comply with an audit may
result in nonrenewal, suspension or revocation of license.
Section 11. Renewal of License. A licensee
shall renew annually prior to the expiration of his or her current license,
which is the last day of the licensee's birth month, by:
(1) Completing KBMIRT Form 6; and
(2) Submitting the Renewal License Fee in
accordance with
201 KAR 46:020, Section 2,
unless the fee is waived in accordance with
KRS
311B.140.
Section 12. Reinstatement of Lapsed License.
A licensee who has allowed the license to lapse for up to twelve (12) months is
eligible to be reinstated upon submission of KBMIRT Form 6, documentation of
twelve (12) hours of continuing education, and the payment of reinstatement and
renewal fees pursuant to
201 KAR 46:020, Sections 2
and 7, unless the fees are waived in accordance with
KRS
311B.140. A licensee whose license has lapsed
for more than twelve (12) months shall:
(1)
Successfully pass the ARRT limited scope radiography examination;
(2) Submit a completed and signed application
KBMIRT Form 4;
(3) Submit a
nonrefundable initial application and license fee and reinstatement fee as
mandated in
201 KAR 46:020, Sections 1
and 7, unless the fees are waived in accordance with
KRS
311B.140;
(4) Submit satisfactory results of a criminal
background check completed within the past six (6) months in state of residence
and employment and any other state of residence and employment within the past
five (5) years; and
(5) Submit a
copy of a government-issued photo ID.
Section 13. Incorporation by Reference.
(1) The following material is incorporated by
reference:
(a) KBMIRT Form 4, "Limited X-ray
Machine Operator License Application", August 2020;
(b) KBMIRT Form 5, "Temporary Limited X-ray
Machine Operator License Application", August 2020;
(c) KBMIRT Form 6, "Limited X-ray Machine
Operator Renewal Application", August 2020;
(d) "Examination Content Specifications -
Limited Scope of Practice in Radiography", January 2018; and
(e) "Examination Content Specifications -
Bone Densitometry Equipment Operator", January 2018.
(2) This material may be inspected, copied,
or obtained, subject to applicable copyright law, at the Board of Medical
Imaging and Radiation Therapy, 125 Holmes Street, Suite 320, Frankfort,
Kentucky 40601, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
STATUTORY AUTHORITY:
KRS 311B.050,
311B.100(2),
311B.110
