Section 1023.32. Credit for continuing education

(a) Credit. An EMS provider and an EMSVO shall receive one credit for each 60 minutes of instruction approved by the Department for continuing education credit presented in a classroom setting by a continuing education sponsor. Credit may not be received if attendance or other participation in the course is not adequate to meet the educational objectives of the course as determined by the course sponsor. Credit may not be received if the EMS provider or EMSVO misses more than 15% of the time assigned for the course. Credit may not be received for other than 30- or 60-minute units of instruction. The course must be at least 30 minutes. An EMS provider and an EMSVO will receive credit for a specific course only one time per registration cycle, even if the EMS provider or EMSVO has repeated the course in a different year of the same registration cycle. Continuing education credits may not be carried over from one certification period to another. For completing a continuing education course that is not presented in a classroom setting, or that is not presented by a continuing education sponsor, the EMS provider or EMSVO shall receive the number of credit hours assigned by the Department to the course.

(b) Course completion. An EMS provider or EMSVO may not receive credit for a continuing education course not completed, as evidenced by satisfaction of the check-in/check-out process for a course presented in a classroom setting by a continuing education sponsor, which reflects that the EMS provider or EMSVO met the continuing education attendance requirement for receiving credit, and the continuing education sponsor’s report to the Department verifying that the EMS provider or EMSVO has completed the course. The course will not be considered completed if the EMS provider or EMSVO does not satisfy other course completion requirements imposed by this chapter and the continuing education sponsor.

(c) Continuing education credit for instruction. An EMS provider or EMSVO shall receive credit for serving as an instructor in a continuing education course offered by a continuing education sponsor, or in a course that satisfies requirements for EMS provider or EMSVO certification conducted by an EMS educational institute. An EMS provider or EMSVO shall receive credit for teaching a continuing education course equal to the amount of credit for which a continuing education course is approved by the Department, and shall receive credit for teaching a course that satisfies requirements for EMS provider or EMSVO certification equal to the number of hours served as an instructor in that course. An EMS provider or EMSVO shall receive credit for teaching the same course only once during a registration renewal cycle.

(d) Continuing education credit through endorsement. An EMS provider or EMSVO who attends or teaches a course offered by an organization with National or State accreditation to provide education may apply to the Department to receive credit for the course. The EMS provider or EMSVO shall have the burden of demonstrating to the Department that the course meets standards substantially equivalent to the standards imposed in this chapter.

(e) Continuing education credit assigned to courses not conducted by a continuing education sponsor. If a course is offered by an organization with National or State accreditation to provide education, which is not a continuing education sponsor, the Department will assign credit to the course, including the possibility of no credit or partial credit, based upon considerations of whether the course is based entirely upon appropriate subject matter and whether the method of presenting the course meets standards substantially equivalent to those prescribed in this chapter.

(f) Continuing education credit assigned to self-study courses. Credit may be sought from the Department for a self-study continuing education course. The EMS provider or EMSVO shall submit an application to the Department to approve the self-study course for credit prior to beginning the course and supply the Department with the materials the Department requests to conduct the evaluation. The Department will assign credit to the course, including the possibility of no credit or partial credit, based upon considerations of whether the course addresses appropriate subject matter and whether the method of completing the course meets standards substantially equivalent to those prescribed in this chapter. The Department may require modifications to the proposed self-study as a precondition to approving it for credit.

(g) Continuing education credit assigned to courses not presented in a classroom setting. An EMS provider or EMSVO shall be awarded credit for completing a course without the EMS provider or EMSVO physically attending the course in a classroom setting, provided the course has been approved by the Department for credit when presented in that manner.

(h) Department record of continuing education credits. A record of the continuing education credits received by EMS providers and EMSVOs shall be maintained by the Department in a Statewide registry that may be accessed by an EMS provider or EMSVO through a secure access process provided by the Department.

(i) Resolution of discrepancies. It is the responsibility of an EMS provider and an EMSVO to review the record of continuing education credits in the Statewide registry for that individual and to notify the appropriate regional EMS council of any discrepancy. The Department will resolve all discrepancies between the number of continuing education credits reported and the number of continuing education credits an EMS provider or EMSVO alleges to have earned, which are not resolved by the regional EMS council. An EMS provider and an EMSVO will not receive credit for completing the same continuing education course more than once during a registration renewal cycle.

The provisions of this § 1023.32 adopted October 11, 2013, effective April 10, 2014, 43 Pa.B. 6093.