UPDATE - May 7, 2006

Respiratory Therapists are encouraged to keep abreast of changes by continuing to monitor the PSRC website as any new information will be immediately communicated via the website. Therapists may also contact the PSRC Legislative Affairs Committee Chair Garry Kauffman (2006Legislative Chair@psrc.net), or by contacting the board of medicine @ 717-783-1400.

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As the regulation process continues to move along, the PSRC has become aware of a number of rumors that are floating around regarding the status of the regulations. Here now is a list that separates the rumors and the facts! Any questions you have regarding this ongoing process can be emailed to the PSRC Legislative Committee Chair (Garry Kauffman) at 2006Legislativechair@psrc.net

1) RUMOR: The PA Board Of Medicine and the PA House Professional Licensure Committee have already decided our Continuing Education requirement issue.

FACT: As of 02/16/2006, the continuing education issue has not been resolved in either the PA BOARD OF MEDICINE, THE PA OSTEOPATHIC BOARD, OR THE PA HOUSE PROFESSIONAL LICENSURE COMMITTEE.

2) RUMOR: Our continuing education requirements will be pro-rated so that we only need 10 Continuing education units ending Dec. 31, 2006, in order to renew our certificate.

FACT: Discussion took place at a recent Board of Medicine meeting regarding this topic and the general concensus was that RT's were notified last June that 20 hours of continuing education will be required prior to December 31, 2006, and that this was more than enough notice for this requirement to be met. Therefore pro-rating of continuing education requirements was not a consideration. .

3) RUMOR: The recommendation from the BOM is that Continuing Education Requirements will be split into 10 live and 10 non-traditional.

FACT: As of 02/16/2006, the BOM has not sent any recommendations regarding respiratory care continuing education requirements to the PA House Professional Licensure Committee. During the comment period that followed the initial publication of the regulations, the PSRC recommended that at least 1/2 of the continuing education requirement be accepted by non-traditional sources (i.e. the internet, professional journals, etc.). The Board of Medicine was not opposed to this recommendation and has agreed to consider a combination of live and non-traditional continuing education. However, no definitive numbers have been established and until the final regulations are published, it is recommended that RT's continue to complete continuing education through LIVE events only.

4) RUMOR: The PSRC is making the decisions regarding continuing education for RT's.

FACT: The PSRC has no control over the regulations regarding continuing education other than to offer advice to the PA State Board of Medicine and the PA State Board of Osteopathic Medicine. The content of the regulations is the responsibility of these two bodies and NOT the PSRC.

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UPDATE - December 12, 2005

• PSRC Legislative Committee Chair John Conrad along with committee members Gary Kauffman and Tom Lamphere met with members of the PA State Board of Medicine on September 28, 2005. The main purpose of the meeting was to review the PSRC's request that the PA State Board of Medicine broaden their interpretation of the new law that now governs continuing education for Respiratory Therapists in the state. Specifically, the PSRC requested that the Board's interpretation of the new law include non-traditional types of continuing education (internet courses, journals, etc.). After learning that potential obstacles to the passage of the new regulations may include the lack of any requirement for courses on Patient Safety or Ethics, the PSRC also recommended that one hour of the continuing education course be mandated for each of these topics.

• The PSRC presented several documents supporting their request including letters from the AARC and PSRC Presidents, the results of a PSRC survey of RT department managers across the state, research articles supporting the use of internet education, and the results of a survey of other state laws.

• After a discussion on various aspects of the request, a general consensus was achieved that 50/50 split of traditional versus non-traditional programs is appropriate. This would allow for 10 hours of the mandatory requirement of 20 hours to be completed via non-traditional routes.

• Although a general consensus was reached that would allow non-traditional forms of continuing education, the regulatory process is still ongoing and has several more steps (including passage by the PA House of Representatives) before the final regulations are published. Therefore, the PSRC and PA State Board of Medicine continue to recommend that any therapist who wishes to complete some or all of their continuing education hours do so at LIVE events that are approved for continuing education by the AARC, AMA (category I), AOA, or CSRT until final regulations are published that allow non-traditional forms of continuing education.

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UPDATE - September 10, 2005

• The PSRC Legislative Affairs Committee has completed a survey of Respiratory Care department managers regarding the new continuing education law. The results of this survey will be presented to the PA State Board of Medicine along with several other documents (including a strong letter from AARC President John Hiser) supporting the PSRC's request to broaden the interpretation of the new law to include non-traditional types of continuing education. Non-traditional education includes internet courses, journals, etc. .

• Keep an eye on the PSRC website as we have been informed that the process of finalizing the regulations for the new law continues to move forward. Watch for an update later this month!