Or. Admin. Code § 851-021-0010 - Approval of New Nursing Education Programs
(1) Step 1 - Letter of Intent:
(a) At minimum of one year in advance of the
anticipated opening date, an educational institution or a program that is part
of a corporate structure wishing to establish a new program in nursing must
give written notification of intent to establish a new nursing education
program to the Board representative, chief nurse executives of planned nursing
practice experience sites, and to nursing program administrators of all
existing OSBN-approved nursing education programs.
(b) The letter of intent must include
information about size and type of program proposed, projected start date,
student enrollment, geographic region and planned nursing practice experience
sites.
(c) The nurse administrators
and chief nurse executives, duly notified, have the option of responding. Such
response must be sent to the appropriate Board representative within 30 days
from the date on the letter of intent and must address potential adverse
impacts to other programs or nursing practice experience entities.
(d) The Board representative must retain the
letters of response and send a copy of the letters to the applicant within 45
days of the date on the applicant's letter of intent. These letters must be
included in the applicant's preliminary application when submitted.
(2) Step 2 - Preliminary
Application
(a) After receiving the letters
of response from the Board representative, the applicant may make application
for Preliminary approval.
(b) The
preliminary application must address at minimum the following information:
(A) Purpose, size, and type of program
proposed.
(B) Studies documenting
the statewide need for graduates of the program. The study should also
specifically address the need for the program in relation to the nursing needs
of the geographic region to be served.
(C) An analysis of potential impact on other
nursing programs in the state including:
(i)
An analysis of current usage of potential nursing practice experience sites in
the area proposed for student placements including impact on other programs
placing students in nursing practice experience sites;
(ii) Projected number of faculty positions
and availability of qualified faculty in the area proposed for nursing practice
experience placements; and,
(iii)
Letters of response from Oregon-approved nursing programs addressing specific
concerns regarding adverse impact on current programs.
(D) Evidence of interactions with the Nurse
Administrators of currently approved nursing programs in area of planned
nursing practice experience placements to discuss the impact on those nursing
programs.
(E) Availability of
adequate practice sites for the program with supporting documentation from
persons assigned to coordinate nursing practice experience placements for each
facility showing facility size, average patient numbers, number of other
programs hosted, and potential available placements.
(F) Plans for informing potential students of
expected transportation and distance requirements for nursing practice
experience placements.
(G) Evidence
of administrative and financial support for development of a nursing
program.
(H) Evidence of the
appointment of a qualified Nurse Administrator and sufficient administrative
support staff for program development.
(I) Anticipated student enrollment and
proposed date of enrolment.
(J) A
program that is part of a corporate structure must also address the current
number of new programs in an approval process in other states, the program
outcomes for nursing programs in other states inclusive of licensing
examination pass rates, student retention rates, employment rates, the current
faculty vacancy rate:
(i) Provide any
contracts, charters, or documents that reflect the relationship of the Oregon
program to the corporate structure; and
(ii) Evidence of local control of faculty
hiring, budget, and curriculum.
(K) The Board representative must summarize
the content of the letters of response and bring that summary to the
Board.
(L) The applicant must
respond to any Board requests for additional information.
(M) The Board, after timely review and
consideration of the information contained in the letter of intent and any
supplementary information, must either grant or deny permission to begin
development of a nursing program, including rationale for the
decision.
(N) If permission is
granted, the applicant may begin preparing the Application for Developmental
Approval as established in OAR
851-021-0010(3).
If the applicant does not submit a complete developmental approval application
within twelve months after the date of the Board granting permission to
proceed, the permission to begin program development is expired.
(O) If the applicant is denied permission to
begin development of a nursing program:
(i)
The program may submit a revised letter of intent and preliminary application
no sooner than six months from the previous submission;
(ii) A hearing before the Board may be
requested in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act.
(3) Step 3 -
Application for Developmental Approval:
(a) An
educational institution or program that has received approval of the program's
letter of intent and preliminary application to develop a nursing program may
make application for developmental approval.
(b) The developmental approval application
must include at minimum the following information:
(A) Evidence of accreditation of the
educational institution and all entities that are part of a corporate structure
by an appropriate regional or national accrediting association or agency:
(i) Approval as a degree-granting institution
of higher education in Oregon for programs located in Oregon; and,
(ii) Accreditation by a regional association
or national agency recognized by the United States Department of Education
(USDE).
(B) Evidence of
the appointment of a qualified Nurse Administrator as specified in OAR
851-021-0045.
(C) Evidence that the educational institution
agrees to center the administrative control of the nursing program to the
nursing program administrator and must continue to provide the support and
resources necessary to maintain the standards for approval as specified in OAR
851-021-0045.
(D) Administration and organizational plan
delineating lines of authority and decision making impacting the nursing
program.
(E) Description of
proposed instructional modalities and resources to support these modalities
with dates of availability.
(F)
Availability of adequate practice sites for the program with supporting
documentation from persons assigned to coordinate nursing practice experience
placements for each facility.
(G)
Availability of adequate educational facilities, services, resources, and
nursing practice experience placement sites for the entire length of the
program.
(H) Evidence of financial
resources adequate for planning, implementation, and continuation of the
program, including proposed operating costs.
(I) Tentative timetable for planning the
program.
(J) Tentative start date
for the program.
(K) Current
educational institution catalog inclusive of all published information provided
to students on accreditations and approvals.
(L) Signed formal agreement for the
articulation of program graduates into the next level of nursing education. The
agreement must be with an Oregon-based program or an on-line program that meets
criteria for Oregon registered nurse licensure and does not require residency
of any length outside of Oregon. Such articulation agreement must define
specific accepted credits for progression in the registered nurse program:
(i) Programs leading to a certificate or
degree in practical nursing must have an agreement that prepares candidates for
licensure as a registered nurse; and,
(ii) Programs leading to an associate degree
in nursing must have an agreement with program leading to a baccalaureate or
higher degree in nursing.
(c) The applicant must respond to the Board's
request for additional information.
(d) After a timely review the Board will
notify the program within 20 business days of the Board's decision.
(e) Once the developmental program
application is approved by the Board, the program has twelve months to submit
an application for Initial Approval or the developmental approval will
expire.
(f) If developmental
approval is denied:
(A) The program may submit
a revised developmental application no sooner than six months from the previous
submission;
(B) The applicant may
request a hearing before the Board in accordance with the Administrative
Procedures Act.
(4) Step 4 - Initial Approval:
(a) Initial approval status may be applied
for with documented evidence that the following conditions have been met:
(A) Preliminary Application as described in
OAR 851-021-0010(2)
has received Board approval.
(B)
Evidence of approval for the new program has been obtained from the appropriate
agencies or bodies that review and approve new programs for public and private
educational institutions:
(i) An educational
institution must provide one copy of the report that was submitted to each
agency and a copy of the letter indicating that approval for the program have
been granted;
(ii) A program that
is part of a corporate structure must provide documentation that each member
educational institution has approved the program, as well as documentation of
agency approval as above; and,
(iii) An educational institution approved by
the Oregon Department of Education; Private Career Schools section must provide
current documentation.
(C) A timetable for on boarding faculty
allows adequate time for faculty to assist with curriculum
development.
(D) Evidence that a
sufficient number of qualified nurse educators, other required educators and
administrative support services are in place a minimum of six months prior to
the beginning of the courses.
(E)
Documentation of budgeted funds to cover faculty salaries.
(F) Evidence that the following have been
submitted to the Board a minimum of three months prior to initiation of the
program:
(i) A tentative written proposed
program plan, including curriculum developed in accordance with OAR
851-021;
(ii) Readiness for
admission of students in educational and nursing practice experience facilities
including placement sites for the maximum number of students enrolled at one
time;
(iii) Policies for admission
and progression;
(iv) A
comprehensive plan for evaluation of the nursing program that addresses key
outcomes; and,
(v) Board-approved,
signed agreement for the articulation of program graduates into the next level
of nursing education as established in OAR
851-021-0010
(3)(b)(L).
(b) Following Board receipt and review of the
information required in OAR
851-021-0010(3),
the Board may grant or deny initial approval.
(c) If initial approval is granted, a site
visit may be conducted by a representative of the Board.
(d) Initial approval must be received by a
program prior to publication of the program and recruitment or acceptance of
students for admission to the first class of nursing students.
(e) A new program may admit only one class of
students until final Board approval has been granted.
(f) If initial approval is denied, the
applicant may request a hearing before the Board in accordance with the
Administrative Procedures Act.
(g)
Interim visits and progress reports may be requested by the Board at any time
during the initial approval phase and following initial approval as deemed
necessary by the Board.
(h) If the
educational institution does not admit a class within twelve months after the
date designated for initiating the program, the initial approval is
expired.
(5) Step 5 -
Final Approval:
(a) Eligibility for final
approval occurs after the graduation of the first class of students.
(b) Within six months following graduation of
the first class, the program must submit a self-study report addressing
compliance with OAR 851-021-0040 through
851-021-0070 and a survey visit
must be made for consideration of approval of the program.
(c) The decision of the Board to grant or
deny approval must be based on:
(A) Review of
a self-study report submitted by the program addressing compliance with OAR
851-021;
(B) The success rate of
graduates on the national licensure examination; and,
(C) A survey report by a representative of
the Board.
(d) If
approval is denied, the applicant may request a hearing before the Board in
accordance of the Administrative Procedures Act.
Notes
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 678.150, ORS 678.340 & ORS 678.360
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 678.150 & ORS 678.360
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