Utah Admin. Code R156-24b-303b - Continuing Education

(1) Under Subsection 58-24b-303(2), the continuing education requirement for a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant during each two-year renewal cycle commencing on June 1 of each odd numbered year are established in this section.

(2) As used in this section:

(a) "Contact hour" means 50 continuous minutes of participation in a continuing education activity without a break period.

(b) "Continuing Education Unit" or "CEU" means the standard unit of measurement to signify a licensee's completion of participation in a continuing education activity.

(c) "Category I" CEU means:

(i) a fellowship, residency, specialty certification, degree awarding education program, or in-person attendance at a live educational program event in which participants can interact with the presenter in real time; and

(ii) one contact hour of Category I CEU equals two continuing education units.

(d) "Category II" CEU means:

(i) in-person attendance at live educational coursework or a live education program in a school setting, an electronic course with assessment, volunteer service, clinical instructor supervision, or teaching a physical therapy education course; and

(ii) one contact hour of Category II CEU equals 1 and 1/2 continuing education units.

(e) "Category III" CEU means:

(i) electronic physical therapy educational coursework without assessment or examination, in-service presentations, self-study, journal clubs, or ethics or law coursework; and

(ii) one contact hour of Category III CEU equals one continuing education unit.

(f) "Category IV" CEU means:

(i) licensed practice by a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant, up to a total of 500 hours; and

(ii) 50 practice hours of Category IV CEU equals one CEU.

(g) "Clinical instructor supervision" means the supervision of one or more:

(i) non-physical therapy students;

(ii) physical therapist assistants; or

(iii) physical therapy students.

(h) "Fellowship" means a post-professional program focused on a defined area of practice for professionals who have already completed a residency, or who are board-certified by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS) in a related area of specialty.

(i) "Group study" means a group of two or more licensed professionals that regularly meets to discuss shared areas or fields of learning, with topics that advance professional skill and experience.

(j) "Independent study" means structured learning experiences by an individual that take place outside of traditional learning environments.

(k) "Publication" means activities undertaken by an author or coauthor to design or implement, research, draft, edit, and submit material for publication.

(l) "Renewal educational coursework" means live, in-person, or electronic education with assessment undertaken in traditional learning environments, academic coursework, lectures, seminars, conferences, or workshops.

(m) "Research" means contribution to a research project through data collection, project development, or consultation.

(n) "Residency" means a post-professional program that focuses on a defined area of physical therapy practice.

(o) "Volunteer service" means services provided at no charge that rely on the skills and advance the professional competence of a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant, such as serving on a professional board or providing services at a health fair screening.

(3) During each two-year renewal cycle, a physical therapist shall complete at least 40 CEUs, of which at least two CEUs shall be in ethics or law. A physical therapist who completes more than the required number of CEUs during a two-year renewal cycle may carry over up to ten excess CEUs to the next two-year renewal cycle.

(4) During each two- year renewal cycle, a physical therapist assistant shall complete at least 20 CEUs, of which at least two CEUs shall be in ethics or law. A physical therapist assistant who completes more than the required number of CEUs during a two-year renewal cycle may carry over up to five excess CEUs to the next two-year renewal cycle.

(5) If a licensee first becomes licensed during the two-year renewal period, the licensee's required number of CEUs shall be decreased proportionately according to the date of licensure.

(6) The Division may defer or waive CEU requirements under Section R156-1-308d.

(7) A licensee may not apply continuing education or coursework education, including professional upgrades, that the licensee received before being granted a license, to CEUs required after the license is granted.

(8) CEU credit shall be recognized as follows, during each two-year renewal cycle:

(a) for clinical instructor supervision CEUs, up to ten CEUs for a physical therapist and up to five CEUs for a physical therapist assistant;

(b) for lecturing or instructing a course at an accredited university or college, continuing education course, or as an invited guest lecturer, up to ten CEUs for a physical therapist and up to five CEUs for a physical therapist assistant, subject to the following:

(i) one CEU shall be awarded for each hour of instruction;

(ii) credit shall be awarded for lecturing or instructing the same course up to two times; and

(iii) documentation of completion shall include a certificate or record from the human resources department.

(c) for volunteer service CEUs, up to ten CEUs for a physical therapist and up to five CEUs for a physical therapist assistant; and

(d) for practice hours CEUs, up to ten CEUs for a physical therapist and up to five CEUs for a physical therapist assistant.

(9) A continuing education course for a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant shall meet the following requirements:

(a) have content relevant to the practice of physical therapy;

(b) have learning objectives that are clearly stated in course material;

(c) be prepared and presented by individuals who are qualified by education, training, and experience; and

(d) be approved by, conducted by, or under the sponsorship of one of the following:

(i) a recognized accredited college or university;

(ii) a state or federal agency;

(iii) a professional association, organization, or facility involved in the practice of physical therapy; or

(iv) a commercial continuing education provider;

(e) may be completed as any of the following:

(i) department in-service;

(ii) seminar;

(iii) lecture;

(iv) conference;

(v) training session;

(vi) webinar;

(vii) internet course;

(viii) distance learning course;

(ix) journal club;

(x) authoring of a scholarly peer-reviewed journal article or textbook publication;

(xi) poster platform presentation;

(xii) specialty certification through the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties;

(xiii) post-professional clinical residency or fellowship approved by the American Physical Therapy Association;

(xiv) post-professional doctorate from a CAPTE accredited program;

(xv) lecturing or instructing a continuing education course; or

(xvi) study of a scholarly peer-reviewed journal article; and

(f) for an ethics or law continuing education course, include any of the following subjects:

(i) patient-physical therapist relationships;

(ii) confidentiality;

(iii) documentation;

(iv) charging and coding;

(v) compliance with state or federal laws that impact the practice of physical therapy; or

(vi) a subject in the American Physical Therapy Association Code of Ethics or Guide for Professional Conduct.

(10) A licensee shall maintain adequate documentation as proof of compliance with this section, such as certificate of compliance, school transcript, course description, or other course materials, for two years after the end of the renewal cycle for which the continuing education is due, as follows:

(a) at minimum, CEU course documentation shall include:

(i) date of the course;

(ii) name of the course provider;

(iii) name of the instructor;

(iv) course title;

(v) course objectives; and

(vi) number of contact hours of continuing education credit; and

(b) if the CEU is self-directed, such as independent study, group study, authoring, or in-service, documentation shall include:

(i) dates of study or research;

(ii) title and an abstract of an article, textbook chapter, poster, or platform presentation;

(iii) objectives of a self-study course; and

(iv) number of contact hours of continuing education credit.

Notes

Utah Admin. Code R156-24b-303b

Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2017-2, effective 12/29/2016 Amended by Utah State Bulletin Number 2023-07, effective 3/27/2023