Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1050-03-.07 - EDUCATIONAL COURSE APPROVAL AND CURRICULUM FOR LIMITED CERTIFICATION

(1) Course approval

(a) To be approved to provide limited radiological certification training the educational course director must obtain Board approval by submitting the following information to the Board Administrative Office:

1. Location of the course; and

2. Names of physicians, A.R.R.T. technologists, physicists, or other work qualified personnel who are acting as instructors. Individuals with just a limited radiological certification, without further credentials that this rule allows or the Board feels uniquely qualifies them to instruct students in a particular subject, may not under any circumstances teach or otherwise provide limited radiological certification training; and

3. Course description and curriculum.

(b) If the substance of the requirements in subparagraph (1) (a) changes the course provider must submit, within fifteen (15) days of the change, a new request for course approval. Course approval may be withdrawn for failure to timely submit the new request and/or for changes that result in the course no longer meeting the requirements of subparagraph (1) (a).

(c) To remain approved to provide limited radiological certification training the educational course director must obtain Board approval every two (2) years by submitting the information required in subparagraph (1) (a).

(2) The following curriculum is mandatory for all limited certification education programs and course approval shall be based upon the level of radiological education obtainable through the program courses according to the following:

(a) Basic Course - Defined as the core, theory or foundation education basic to radiography. The basic course is prerequisite to any specialty area certification except bone densitometry, but needs to be successfully completed only once. The basic radiological course shall include, but not be limited to, imaging equipment, principles or radiographic exposure, radiation protection, radiographic quality and radiographic film processing. This course shall consist of fifty (50) clock hours. Successful completion of this course may be substituted for the bone densitometry course required in part (2) (b) 2.

(b) Specialty Areas

1. Chest, extremities, skull, sinus, spine - Defined as the study of radiography of a particular anatomical part including human structure and function, radiographic positioning and procedures, and evaluation of radiographs. Each separate specialty area course shall minimally consist of the following amount of classroom clock hours:

(i) Chest - ten (10) classroom clock hours;

(ii) Extremities - until June 1, 2008 ten (10) classroom clock hours and thereafter forty (40) classroom clock hours;

(iii) Skull and Sinuses - ten (10) classroom clock hours; and

(iv) Spine - until June 1, 2008, ten (10) classroom clock hours and thereafter thirty (30) classroom clock hours.

2. Bone Densitometry - Defined as the core, theory or foundation education basic to operation of bone densitometry equipment. This course shall include, but not be limited to: radiation protection and safety, principles of exposure of bone densitometry scanning machines, patient care, and anatomy of long bones and spine, including construction of bone, destruction of bone, and measurement of bone mass. This specialty area course shall consist of twenty-four (24) clock hours.

(c) Clinical Training - Defined as "hands-on" observation and participation in the production of diagnostic radiographs. Clinical training must be supervised by either a residency-trained radiologist, or by a licensed physician in conjunction and consultation with a fully-licensed and registered operator (A.R.R.T. registered radiographer) with at least three (3) years experience when appropriate. This training shall minimally consist of the following amount of clinical clock hours for each specialty area in which certification is sought:

1. Chest - sixty (60) clinical clock hours;

2. Extremities - until June 1, 2008, sixty (60) clinical clock hours and thereafter eighty (80) clinical clock hours;

3. Skull and Sinuses - sixty (60) clinical clock hours; and

4. Spine - until June 1, 2008, sixty (60) clinical clock hours and thereafter eighty (80) clinical clock hours.

(d) Specialty areas defined

1. Chest - includes visceral thorax only; routine projections are PA, AP, Lateral, Oblique, Decubitus, and Apical Lordotic.

2. Extremities

(i) Upper Extremity includes all routine views of the fingers up through the pectoral girdle.

(ii) Lower Extremity includes the toes up through the femur including routine unilateral hip joint views, but not the pelvis.

3. Skull and Sinuses

(i) Skull - includes AP/PA, Townes and Lateral.

(ii) Sinuses - includes upright PA/Caldwell, Lateral, and Waters.

4. Spine - includes AP/PA, Lateral, and Oblique cervical views; AP/PA and Lateral (excluding Breathing Lateral) thoracic views; AP/PA Lateral and Oblique lumbar views; AP/PA, Lateral, and Oblique sacral and sacroiliac views; AP/PA and Lateral coccyx views.

(3) Course approval may be withdrawn if the Board finds the course is in violation of any of its statutes or regulations or if the Board finds the course inadequate for certification purposes based upon random auditing of the course and/or its effectiveness in producing qualified graduates. The minimum standard for continued course approval shall be based upon at least a sixty-five percent (65%) graduate pass rate for first time takers on the examinations over at least a six (6) month period.

(4) The Board of Osteopathic Examination's designee may issue course approval subject to subsequent Board ratification.

Notes

Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1050-03-.07

Original rule filed November 27, 1990; effective January 11, 1991. Amendment filed August 23, 2001; effective November 6, 2001. Amendment filed May 28, 2003; effective August 11, 2003. Amendment filed August 29, 2003; effective November 12, 2003. Amendment filed March 22, 2007; effective June 5, 2007. Amendment filed October 21, 2008; effective January 4, 2009.

Authority: T.C.A. §§ 4-5-202, 4-5-204, 63-9-101, and 63-9-112.