Ariz. Admin. Code § R4-19-216 - Approval of a Refresher Program
A. An applicant for approval of a refresher
program for nurses whose licenses have been inactive or expired for five or
more years, nurses under Board order to enroll in a refresher program, or
nurses who have not met the nursing practice requirements of
R4-19-312 shall submit an electronic of a completed application that provides all of the
following information and documentation:
1.
Applicant's name, address, e-mail address, telephone number, web site address,
if applicable, and fax number;
2.
Proposed starting date for the program;
3. Name and qualifications of all instructors
that meet the requirements of subsection (C);
4. Statement describing the facilities,
staff, and resources that the applicant will use to conduct the refresher
program;
5. A program and
participant evaluation plan that includes student evaluation of the course,
instructor, and clinical experience;
6. Evidence of a curriculum that meets the
requirements of subsection (B);
B. A refresher program for registered and
practice nurses shall provide:
1. Didactic
instruction sufficient to ensure competent and safe practice to the applicable
level of the nursing license, including the following subjects, at a minimum:
a. Nursing process and patient centered
care;
b. Pharmacology, medication
calculation, and medication administration;
c. Communication and working with
inter-professional teams;
d.
Critical thinking, clinical decision making and evidence-based
practice;
e. Delegation,
management, and leadership;
f.
Meeting psychosocial and physiological needs of adult clients with
medical-surgical conditions. Other populations of care may be added to the
content at the program's discretion;
g. Ethics; and
h. Informatics, to include electronic health
record documentation.
2.
The program shall provide clinical experiences that, at a minimum:
a. Ensure that each qualified student has a
verified clinical placement within six months of course enrollment;
b. Provide program policies for clinical
placement in advance of enrollment that specify both the obligations of the
school and the student regarding placement;
c. Validate that a student has the necessary
didactic and theoretical knowledge to function safely in the specific clinical
setting before starting a clinical experience;
d. Ensure that clinical experiences are of
the type and duration to meet the course objectives.
3. Laboratory practice hours, at the
program's discretion, including simulation experiences in accordance with the
clinical objectives of the course, but may not replace clinical
experiences.
4. Curriculum and
other materials to students and prospective students that, include:
a. An overall program description including
student learning objectives;
b.
Objectives, content outline, and hours for didactic and clinical
experience;
c. Course policies that
include but are not limited to admission requirements, passing criteria, cause
for dismissal, clinical requirements, grievance process and student
responsibilities, cost, and length of the program.
C. Refresher program personnel
qualifications and responsibilities:
1. An
administrator of a refresher program shall:
a.
Hold a graduate degree in nursing or a bachelor of science in nursing degree
and a graduate degree in either education or a health-related field,
and
b. Be responsible for
administering and evaluating the program.
2. A faculty member of a refresher program
shall:
a. Hold a minimum of a bachelor of
science in nursing degree,
b. Be
responsible for implementing the curriculum and supervising clinical
experiences either directly or indirectly through the use of clinical
preceptors.
3. Licensure
requirements for program administrator and faculty: The administrator and
faculty members shall hold a current Arizona RN license in good standing or a
multi-state privilege under A.R.S., Title 32, Chapter 15.
4. If preceptors are used for clinical
experiences, the program shall adhere to the preceptorship requirements of
R4-19-206(E).
5. Licensed health
care professionals not regulated by the Board may participate in course
instruction consistent with their licensure and scope of practice, under the
direction of the program administrator or faculty.
D. Program types; bonding:
1. A refresher program may be offered by:
a. An educational institution licensed by the
State Board for Private Postsecondary Education;
b. A public post-secondary educational
institution;
c. A health care
institution licensed by the Arizona Department of Health Services or a health
care institution authorized by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid
Services; or
d. A private business
that meets the requirements of this Section and all other legal requirements to
operate a business in Arizona;
e. A
program funded by a local, state or federal governmental agency, such as a
program within a technical school or school of nursing.
2. If the refresher program is offered by a
private business not licensed by the State Board for Private Postsecondary
Education, the program shall meet the following requirements:
a. Hold a minimum of $15,000 of insurance
covering any potential or future claims for damages resulting from any aspect
of the program or a hold a surety bond from a surety company with a rating of
"A minus" or better by either Best's Credit Ratings, Moody's Investor Service,
or Standard and Poor's rating service.
b. The program shall ensure that:
i. Bond or insurance distributions are
limited to students or former students with a valid claim for instructional or
program deficiencies;
ii. The
amount of the bond or insurance coverage is sufficient to reimburse the full
amount of collected tuition and fees for all students during all enrollment
periods of the program; and
iii.
The bond or insurance is maintained for an additional 24 months after program
closure.
E. The Board shall approve a refresher
program that meets the requirements of this Section, if approval is in the best
interest of the public, for a maximum term of five years. An applicant who is
denied refresher program approval may request a hearing by filing a written
request with the Board within 30 days of service of the Board's order denying
the application for approval. Hearings shall be conducted in accordance with
A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, Article 10 and Article 6 of this Chapter.
F. The refresher program sponsor shall apply
for renewal of approval in accordance with subsection (A) not later than 90
days before expiration of the current approval. The sponsor of a refresher
program that is denied renewal of approval may request a hearing by filing a
written request with the Board within 30 days of service of the Board's order
denying the application for renewal of approval. Hearings shall be conducted in
accordance with A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, and 4 A.A.C. 19, Article 6 of this
Chapter.
G. The sponsor of an
approved refresher program shall provide written notification to the Board
within 15 days of a participant's completion of the program of the following:
1. Name of the participant and whether the
participant successfully completed or failed the program,
2. Participant's license number,
and
3. End date of participant's
participation in the program.
H. The Board may approve a refresher program
application from another U.S. jurisdiction for an individual applicant on a
case-by-case basis if the applicant provides verifiable evidence that the
refresher program substantially meets the requirements of this Section. The
acceptance of the program for an individual applicant does not confer approval
status upon the program.
I. Within
30 days, a refresher program shall report to the Board changes in:
1. Name, address, email address, web site
address or phone number of the program; or
2. Ownership including adding or deleting an
owner.
J. The Board may
take disciplinary action against the approval of a refresher program after
offering a hearing conducted in accordance with A.R.S. Title 41, Chapter 6, and
4 A.A.C. 19, Article 6 of this Chapter.
Notes
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