40 Tex. Admin. Code § 367.1 - Continuing Education

(a) The Act mandates licensee participation in a continuing education program for license renewal. All activities taken to complete this requirement must meet the definition of continuing education as outlined in this section. The licensee is solely responsible for keeping accurate documentation of all continuing education activities and for selecting continuing education as per the requirements in this chapter.

(1) Definition of Continuing Education; also known as CE. Continuing Education - Professional development activities that meet the requirements in this chapter and directly concern one or more of the following:

(A) occupational therapy practice as defined in § 362.1 of this title (relating to Definitions);

(B) health conditions treated by occupational therapy;

(C) ethical or regulatory matters in occupational therapy; or

(D) occupational therapy documentation or reimbursement for occupational therapy services.

(2) Unacceptable Activities. Unacceptable professional development activities not eligible for continuing education include but are not limited to:

(A) Any non-instructional time frames such as breaks, meals, introductions, and pre/post testing.

(B) Business meetings.

(C) Exhibit hall attendance.

(D) Courses that provide information about the work setting's philosophy, policies, or procedures or designed to educate employees about a specific work setting.

(E) Courses in topics concerning professionalism or customer service.

(F) Courses such as: social work; defensive driving; water safety; team building; GRE, GMAT, MCAT preparation; general foreign languages; disposal of hazardous waste; patient privacy; CPR; First Aid; HIPAA; and FERPA.

(b) Required Continuing Education Hours.

(1) Unless otherwise specified in this chapter, 1 hour of continuing education is equal to 1 contact hour.

(2) All licensees must complete a minimum of 24 contact hours every two years during the period of time the license is current in order to renew the license. Licensees must provide proof of completion of contact hours at the Board's request.

(3) Training on Human Trafficking. As part of the minimum hours of required continuing education for each renewal, licensees must complete a training course on human trafficking that is approved by the Health and Human Services Commission. Documentation of completion of a training course is a certificate of completion or letter of verification indicating credit awarded.

(A) Pre-Approved Credit and Additional Credit. The completion of one training course per renewal period to meet the training requirement is pre-approved for continuing education credit up to a maximum of 2 contact hours. Additional continuing education credit may be earned for a training course exceeding 2 hours if the additional hours meet the requirements of this chapter.

(B) Repeated Course. A specific training course completed during one renewal period to meet the training requirement may be completed again during the next renewal period to meet the training requirement for that next renewal. Up to a maximum of 2 contact hours from the repeated course are exempt from subsection (c) of this section and may be applied toward license renewal.

(4) Licensees who submit their renewal with all required items prior to the month when their license expires may count CE completed during their license's expiration month for their next renewal period.

(c) Each continuing education activity may be counted only one time in two renewal cycles.

(d) Activities approved or offered by the American Occupational Therapy Association or the Texas Occupational Therapy Association are pre-approved for CE credit for license renewal. The Board will review its approval process and continuation thereof for educational activities at least every five years.

(e) Program providers are prohibited from self-promotion of programs, products, and/or services during the presentation of the program.

Notes

40 Tex. Admin. Code § 367.1

The provisions of this §367.1 adopted to be effective October 11, 1994, 19 TexReg 7714; amended to be effective January 1, 1996, 20 TexReg 10907; amended to be effective February 2, 1999, 24 TexReg 606; amended to be effective February 3, 2000, 25 TexReg 818; amended to be effective August 21, 2000, 25 TexReg 8063; amended to be effective July 22, 2001, 26 TexReg 5441; amended to be effective January 1, 2003, 27 TexReg 12015; amended to be effective October 27, 2003, 28 TexReg 9291; amended to be effective August 29, 2006, 31 TexReg 6801; amended to be effective May 31, 2007, 32 TexReg 2880; amended to be effective February 25, 2008, 33 TexReg 1603; amended to be effective February 14, 2013, 38 TexReg 676; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 40, Number 36, September 4, 2015, TexReg 5802, eff. 10/1/2015; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 41, Number 23, June 3, 2016, TexReg 4048, eff. 7/1/2016; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 42, Number 20, May 19, 2017, TexReg 2738, eff. 6/1/2017; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 44, Number 33, August 16, 2019, TexReg 4325, eff. 9/1/2019; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 45, Number 33, August 14, 2020, TexReg 5661, eff. 9/1/2020; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 47, Number 07, February 18, 2022, TexReg 0794, eff. 3/1/2022