Subpart 1.
Definitions.
A. "Approved
continuing education" means those continuing pharmacy or pharmacy technician
education programs approved by the board or made available by an approved
provider. These programs may take the form of classes, conferences,
correspondence study courses, institutes, lectures, professional meetings,
programmed learning courses, journal readings, seminars, study groups, or other
program formats commonly accepted by educators as legitimate adult educational
activities.
B. "Approved provider"
means any association, corporation, educational institution, organization,
group, or person who has been recognized by the Board of Pharmacy, in
accordance with subpart
3, as having met its criteria
indicative of the ability to provide quality continuing education programs or
who has been recognized by the board as being approved by the Accreditation
Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE) for the provision of quality continuing
education programs.
C. "Continuing
pharmacy education" is a planned learning experience beyond a formal
undergraduate degree program designed to promote the continual development of
professional knowledge, professional skills, and professional attitudes on the
part of the pharmacist and shall include but is not limited to professional
postgraduate education in any of the following subjects:
(1) properties and actions of drugs and drug
dosage forms;
(2) etiology,
characteristics, and therapeutics of the disease state;
(3) pharmacy practice; or
(4) legal, psychological, and socioeconomic
aspects of health care delivery.
D. "Continuing pharmacy technician education"
is a planned learning experience beyond initial technician training designed to
promote the continued development of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes that
enable a technician to adequately perform the tasks that a technician is
allowed to perform under this part.
Subp. 2.
Minimum hours required for
pharmacists; reporting.
Beginning March 4, 1975, no annual license renewal shall be
issued to a pharmacist under Minnesota Statutes, section
151.13,
until the pharmacist has submitted to the board satisfactory evidence that the
pharmacist has completed at least 30 hours of approved continuing education
during the previous two-year period. Thereafter, a pharmacist shall submit the
evidence every two years. Pharmacists exempted from the payment of all renewal
fees and from the filing of any application for renewal under Minnesota
Statutes, section
326.56,
subdivision 2, shall also be exempted from the requirements of this subpart for
a concurrent period of time. Beginning with the 1981-1983 reporting period,
participation in continuing education shall be reported by September 30 of each
even-numbered year. The board may grant a pharmacist, on application, an
extension of time not to exceed one year to comply with the requirements of
this subpart. The extension shall not relieve the pharmacist from complying
with the continuing education requirements for any other two-year period. Each
pharmacist is responsible for maintaining a complete record of the pharmacist's
continuing education participation during each continuing education reporting
cycle.
Subp. 2a.
Minimum hours required for technicians; reporting.
A. A pharmacy technician's registration
renewal for calendar year 2014 shall not be issued unless the technician has
completed 20 hours of approved continuing pharmacy technician education during
the two-year period between August 1, 2011, and July 31, 2013. Thereafter, no
annual pharmacy technician registration renewal shall be issued unless the
technician presents the board with satisfactory evidence of completion of 20
hours of approved continuing pharmacy technician education per two-year
reporting period. Each reporting period shall end on July 31 of odd-numbered
years.
B. Continuing education must
focus on the competencies that the technician must carry out and the specific
duties that the technician performs. Technicians exempted from the payment of
all renewal fees and from the filing of any application for renewal under
Minnesota Statutes, section
326.56,
subdivision 2, shall also be exempted from the requirements of this subpart for
a concurrent period of time. The board may grant a technician, on application,
an extension of time not to exceed one year to comply with the requirements of
this subpart. The extension shall not relieve the technician from complying
with the continuing education requirements for any other two-year period. Each
technician is responsible for maintaining a complete record of continuing
education participation during each continuing education reporting
cycle.
Subp. 3.
Approval of providers.
Application may be made by an association, corporation,
educational institution, organization, or person to be designated as an
approved provider on forms provided by the board. The applicant shall provide,
at a minimum, information regarding administrative and record keeping
procedures used for past programs; a history of the content, methods of
delivery, and faculty qualifications for past programs; methods of program
needs assessment and development that the applicant has used; and evaluation
mechanisms that the applicant has used. The applicant shall agree to maintain
records of program content, evaluation summary, and attendance for at least
three years following completion of each program. The application must cover
the two-year reporting period for which provider approval is sought.
The board shall approve an applicant as a continuing
education provider based on the applicant's compliance with the following
criteria:
A. The continuing education
programs must have had an identifiable administrative authority who was
responsible for meeting all quality criteria and for maintaining records of
program content, planning, delivery, evaluation, and attendance.
B. The programs' administrative requirements
must have included:
(1) promotion and
advertising of continuing education activities in a responsible fashion clearly
indicating in promotional material the educational objectives of the particular
activity, the nature of the audience that may best benefit from the activity,
the schedule of the activity, the cost of the activity to the participant and
the items covered by that cost, the amount of continuing education credit that
can be earned through participation in the activity, and the credentials of the
faculty;
(2) maintenance and
availability of records of participation in continuing education activities
adequate to serve the needs of the participants and others requiring this
information; and
(3) provision of
evidence to the participant, in the form of a certificate or other document, of
satisfactory completion of a continuing education activity as reasonably
required by the participant.
C. The educational content development must
have included:
(1) Advance planning that
includes a statement of educational goals, behavioral objectives, or both, that
are measurable.
(2) Activities
designed to satisfy educational needs which the board has determined to be
appropriate.
(3) Involvement of
members of the intended audience in identifying their own continuing education
needs.
(4) Activities designed to
explore one subject or a group of closely related subjects. If an activity
involves multiple components, such as a lecture series, all segments must be
devoted to integrally related subjects.
(5) Appropriate mediated material and
supportive instructional material. Previously offered activities, including
those in mediated forms, must have been reviewed by the provider prior to being
offered to new audiences, with a view toward maintaining technical quality,
timeliness, and currency of content, and faculty must have had the opportunity
to update material, if they desired, before an activity was offered to a new
audience.
D. The methods
of delivery must have been consistent with the special needs of the
program.
E. The teaching staff for
a particular continuing education activity must have been competent in the
subject matter and qualified by experience or preparation to the tasks and
method of delivery.
F. An
evaluation mechanism must have been provided to allow the participants to
assess their achievement of program objectives.
G. The provider must have developed and
employed evaluation techniques that assess the effectiveness of the continuing
education activities, and the level of fulfillment of the stated objectives,
for the purpose of provider and activity improvement if indicated.
Applicants with no history of program development in
compliance with items A to G or with an incomplete history will be judged on
their willingness and ability to comply with these criteria in the
future.
Subp.
3a.
Approval of programs.
Application may be made by an association, corporation,
educational institution, organization, group, or person, not presently approved
as a provider, to have a program designated as an approved program. The board
shall approve a continuing education program if it complies with the following
criteria:
A. The provider shall submit
evidence that promotion and advertising of the program will be done in a
responsible fashion. For example, the promotional material should state the
educational objectives of the program, the nature of the audience for which the
program is intended, the program schedule, the cost of the program and the
items covered by that cost, the amount of continuing education credit that can
be earned through the program, and the credentials of the program
faculty.
B. The provider agrees to
maintain records of participation in or attendance at the program for not less
than three years and agrees to make them available to the board upon
request.
C. The provider agrees to
provide evidence to the participant of satisfactory completion of the
program.
D. The program provider
submits evidence that:
(1) program planning
involved members of the intended audience;
(2) the program is designed to satisfy
identified educational needs;
(3)
the program includes a statement of educational goals, behavioral objectives,
or both, that are measurable;
(4)
the program, if it involves multiple components, is devoted to integrally
related subjects; and
(5) any
mediated and supportive instructional material is designed to be used in a
suitable and appropriate manner.
E. The method of program delivery is
consistent with the special needs of the program.
F. The teaching staff appears to be competent
in the subject matter and is qualified by experience or preparation to the task
and method of delivery.
G. An
evaluation mechanism is provided for the purpose of allowing the participants
to assess their achievement of program objectives.
H. The provider has developed and will employ
evaluation techniques that assess the effectiveness of the continuing education
activities, and the level of fulfillment of the stated objectives for the
purpose of provider and activity improvement if indicated.
Applications for program approval must be submitted not less
than 45 days prior to the commencement of the program. The board shall assign
the number of credit hours to each program and shall grant approval or deny
approval of such application within 60 days of receiving the
application.
Subp.
4.
Revocation or suspension of approval.
The board may deny, refuse to renew, revoke, or suspend
authorization, recognition, or approval previously furnished to programs or
providers if the program or provider fails to conform to its application
approved by the board, fails to furnish program content as publicized, or if
the program or provider violates any provision of Minnesota Statutes, section
214.12, or
this chapter.
Subp. 4a.
Programs not previously submitted for approval.
A pharmacist or pharmacy technician may apply for credit for
attendance at programs not previously submitted to the board for approval
provided that the pharmacist or pharmacy technician completes a continuing
education program approval form, obtainable from the board, and submits it to
the board within 90 days after completing the program. The applicant shall
provide, at a minimum, the title, site, date, type, and length of the program
being proposed for approval, a program outline, and a description of the type
of evaluation mechanism used at the program. Approval of the program is subject
to all the standards of Minnesota Statutes, section
214.12, and
subparts
1, item C, and 3a, items B to
G.
Subp. 5.
Hours of
credit.
Credit shall be earned on the basis of attendance at or, in
the case of correspondence courses, completion of a program. Credit for an
identical program may be given only once to any individual during any reporting
period.
Subp. 6.
Credit for presentation of professional lectures.
Pharmacists may apply for credit for presentation of
in-service training programs or lectures consisting of subjects included in the
definition of Continuing Pharmacy Education. Credit for these presentations
will be granted only once to any individual during any reporting period.
Subp. 6a.
Credit for
preceptor training program.
A pharmacist who applies shall be given continuing education
credit for participation in any instructional program for pharmacist preceptors
that is developed or approved by the board.
Subp. 7.
Record of approved
programs.
The board shall maintain a record of approved providers and
approved programs including the hours of credit assigned to each
program.
Subp. 8.
[Repealed, 10 SR 2007]
Subp. 9.
Program promotion.
No reference shall be made by a program provider in
publicizing a program that it is an "approved program provider" unless the
provider is so approved by the board or the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy
Education (ACPE). No other reference indicating endorsement by the board may be
made except as follows: "This program is approved by the Minnesota Board of
Pharmacy for ____ hours of continuing education credit."
