21 NCAC 36 .0232             CONTINUING COMPETENCE

(a)  Upon application for license renewal or reinstatement, each licensee shall:

(1)           complete a self-assessment of practice, including professional responsibility, knowledge based practice, legal and ethical practice, and collaborating with others;

(2)           develop a plan for continued learning; and

(3)           select and implement a learning activity option from those outlined in Paragraph (b) of this Rule.

(b)  Upon application for license renewal or reinstatement, each licensee shall attest to having completed one of the following learning activity options during the preceding renewal cycle and submit evidence of completion if requested by the Board:

(1)           national certification or re-certification related to the nurse's practice role by a national credentialing body recognized by the Board, consistent with 21 NCAC 36 .0120 and 21 NCAC 36 .0801;

(2)           30 contact hours of continuing education activities related to the nurse's practice;

(3)           completion of a Board-approved refresher course, consistent with 21 NCAC 36 .0220 and 21 NCAC 36 .0808(d);

(4)           completion of a minimum of two semester hours of post-licensure academic education related to nursing practice;

(5)           15 contact hours of a continuing education activity related to the nurse's practice and completion of a nursing project as principal or co-principal investigator including a statement of the problem, project objectives, methods, and a summary of findings;

(6)           15contact hours of a continuing education activity related to the nurse's practice and authoring or co-authoring a published nursing-related article, paper, book, or book chapter;

(7)           15 contact hours of a continuing education activity related to the nurse's practice and designing, developing, and conducting an educational presentation or presentations totaling a minimum of five contact hours for nurses or other health professionals; or

(8)           15 contact hours of a continuing education activity related to the nurse's practice and 640 hours of active practice within the previous two years.

(c)  The following documentation shall be accepted as evidence of completion of learning activity options described in Paragraph (b) of this Rule:

(1)           Evidence of national certification that includes a copy of a certificate that states name of licensee, name of certifying body, date of certification, date of certification expiration. Certification shall be initially attained during the licensure period, have been in effect during the entire licensure period, or have been re-certified during the licensure period.

(2)           Evidence of contact hours of continuing education that includes the name of the licensee, title of educational activity, name of the provider, number of contact hours, and date of activity.

(3)           Evidence of completion of a Board-approved refresher course that includes written correspondence from the provider stating the name of the licensee, name of the provider, and verification of successful completion of the course.

(4)           Evidence of post-licensure academic education that includes a copy of a transcript stating the name of the licensee, name of educational institution, date of attendance, name of course with grade, and number of credit hours received.

(5)           Evidence of completion of a nursing project shall include an abstract or summary of the project, the name of the licensee, role of the licensee as principal or co-principal investigator, date of project completion, statement of the problem, project objectives, methods used, and a summary of findings.

(6)           Evidence of authoring or co-authoring a published nursing-related article, paper, book, or book chapter that includes a copy of the publication stating the name of the licensee and publication date.

(7)           Evidence of developing and conducting an educational presentation or presentations totaling at least five contact hours for nurses or other health professionals that includes a copy of the program brochure or course syllabi, objectives, content and teaching methods, and date and location of presentation.

(8)           Evidence of 640 hours of active practice in nursing shall include documentation of the name of the licensee, number of hours worked in calendar or fiscal year, name and address of employer, and signature of supervisor. If self-employed, hours worked shall be validated through other methods such as tax records or other business records. If active practice is of a volunteer or gratuitous nature, hours worked shall be validated by the recipient agency.

(d)  A licensee shall retain supporting documentation to provide proof of completion of the option chosen in Paragraph (b) of this Rule for three years.

(e)  At the time of license renewal or reinstatement, licensees shall be subject to audit for proof of compliance with the Board's requirements for continuing competence.

(f)  The Board shall inform licensees of their selection for audit at the time of license renewal or request for reinstatement. Documentation of acceptable evidence shall be consistent with Paragraph (c) of this Rule and shall be submitted to the Board no later than the last day of the renewal month.

(g)  Failure of a licensee to meet the requirements of this Rule at the time of renewal shall result in the license not being renewed until evidence of compliance is submitted and approved by the Board.

(h)  Licensee shall not be reinstated until licensee has met all of the requirements of this Rule.

History Note:        Authority G.S. 90-171.23(b); 90-171.37(1) and (8);

Eff. May 1, 2006;

Amended Eff. November 1, 2008;

Readopted Eff. January 1, 2019.