Minnesota Legislature
Office of the Revisor of Statutes
Minnesota Administrative Rules
9100.1000 CONTINUING EDUCATION.
Subpart 1.
Continuing education required.
Commencing with license renewal for 1997, no license renewal may be issued to a veterinarian, pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 156.07, until the veterinarian has certified to the board that the veterinarian has completed at least 40 hours of approved continuing education during the previous two years. Thereafter, each veterinarian possessing a license to practice veterinary medicine shall certify compliance at the time of each subsequent biennial license renewal. Licensees with odd-numbered licenses renewed in 1997 are required to have completed 20 credit hours and thereafter 40 credit hours for subsequent biennial license renewal periods. Licensees with even-numbered licenses are required to have completed 40 credit hours at time of 1998 renewal.
Subp. 2.
Purpose.
The primary purpose of continuing veterinary education is to assure the consumer of an optimal quality of veterinary care by requiring veterinarians to attend educational or training programs designed to advance their professional skills, knowledge, and obligations.
Subp. 3.
Approved continuing education programs.
A.
Courses, seminars, wet labs, and lectures sponsored by accredited colleges of veterinary medicine; the AVMA and CVMA; state, regional, and local VMAs; AVMA recognized specialty boards; academic or specialty groups; international veterinary organizations; the Minnesota Academy of Veterinary Practice; the U.S. Animal Health Association; training programs of the U.S.D.A. and Minnesota Board of Animal Health; and the AAHA are automatically approved and do not require advance approval on an individual program basis.
B.
Sponsors of programs not automatically approved in item A must apply to the board for course approval at least 90 days prior to the anticipated presentation date.
Applications for approval of a continuing education program must be submitted on a form provided by the board containing the following information:
(1)
the name and address of the organization sponsoring the course for which approval is requested;
(5)
the dates and location, including the name and address of the facility at which the course will be conducted; and
C.
Program approval criteria:
(1)
The criteria in units (a) to (d) must be used to determine approval of a continuing education program.
(a)
The educational activities must have significant intellectual or practical content dealing primarily with information on skills directly related to the practice of veterinary medicine, to the professional responsibility or ethical and legal obligations of the participants, or to practice management concepts.
(b)
Presenters must be qualified by practical or academic experience to teach the subject covered.
(d)
Except for limitations due to space availability or instructor/pupil ratio or academic or experience prerequisites, courses must be open to all licensed veterinarians.
(2)
Licensees, within 30 days of attending a nonpreapproved course, may apply to the board for credit by completing and submitting an individual continuing education course approval form. The board is the final determinator of credit to be allowed.
(3)
Courses not directly related to the practice of veterinary medicine, such as estate planning, investments, and marketing of ancillary products, must not be approved for continuing education credit.
(4)
Providers, in advertisements for approved programs, must use the following phrase: "This program has been approved by the Minnesota Board of Veterinary Medicine for ............ (insert appropriate number) continuing education credit hours."
(5)
Providers must maintain records of attendance for a minimum of three years and must verify individual attendance to the board upon request.
Subp. 4.
Continuing education advisory committee.
A.
A six-member continuing education advisory committee is established to assist and advise the board in continuing education matters. Two members of the committee must be designated by the Minnesota Academy of Veterinary Practice; two must be members of the board; one member must be designated by the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota; and one member must be designated by the Minnesota Veterinary Medical Association. The executive director of the board shall serve as secretary of the committee.
B.
Responsibilities of the continuing education advisory committee include:
(1)
reviewing proposed continuing education programs for approval and recommending the number of continuing education credit hours that will be awarded;
(2)
reviewing individual licensee requests for continuing education credit approval and recommending the number of credit hours to be awarded;
(3)
reviewing the validity of individual requests for a waiver of continuing education requirements; and
C.
All recommendations of the continuing education advisory committee must be approved by the board.
Subp. 5.
Requirements for relicensure.
Each licensee must obtain 40 hours of approved continuing education credit in the two years immediately preceding the biennial license renewal deadline.
A.
Thirty of the 40 required hours of continuing education credit must be obtained from interactive sources, such as lectures, seminars, wet labs, interactive television, or as a presenter of a continuing education topic or author of a referred journal article or contributing author for a recognized textbook.
B.
For self study, such as journal reading, audio/visual tape instruction, or other noninteractive study, three hours of study must be awarded one hour of continuing education credit. Not more than ten hours of continuing education credit from noninteractive sources must be accepted toward the 40-hour continuing education credit requirement for licensure renewal.
C.
Not more than ten hours of continuing education credit must be accepted for courses, seminars, or training sessions focused on practice management.
Subp. 6.
Credit determination.
A.
Ten hours of continuing education credit must be granted for authoring a scientific paper or book chapter published in a scholarly journal or book.
B.
Up to ten hours of continuing education credit must be granted on a one-time basis for a paper or exhibit presented before a professional veterinary or allied health audience. Two hours of credit must be given for each hour of presentation, to a maximum of ten credit hours.
C.
One hour of continuing education credit must be given for each period of not less than 50 minutes of attendance at an approved continuing education program. Credit for attendance at combined scientific, business, and social conventions must be given only for the actual number of hours spent participating in continuing education programs.
Subp. 7.
Extension and waivers of continuing education requirements.
A.
For good cause, a licensee may apply to the board for a six-month extension of the deadline for obtaining the required number of continuing education credits. No more than two consecutive extensions may be granted. Extensions may be granted for unforeseen hardships such as illness, family emergency, and military call-up.
B.
Waiver of continuing education requirements must be granted to licensees enrolled in a graduate or residency program leading to an advanced degree or certification in a specialty or academic field related to veterinary medicine.
C.
Waiver of continuing education requirements must be granted to licensees who are members in current good standing of academies and specialty boards that have continuing education requirements equal to or higher than board requirements.
D.
Waiver of continuing education requirements must be granted to licensees who practice and maintain licensure in another United States or Canadian jurisdiction that has continuing education requirements equal to or higher than board requirements.
E.
Continuing education requirements are waived for the time period immediately preceding the first license renewal date.
Subp. 8.
Certification procedure.
A.
The board, at the time of license renewal, must furnish each licensee a form upon which the licensee must certify fulfillment of the required number of continuing education hours for the two-year period preceding the license renewal date or that they qualify for waiver of requirements as specified in items B to E.
B.
Licensees are responsible for maintaining documentation of continuing education attendance for a minimum of four years. The board may, at its discretion, require licensees to furnish additional evidence as is necessary to verify compliance with board continuing education requirements. Upon board request, whether as part of a routine audit or as part of an individual complaint investigation, a licensee must furnish, within 30 days, proof to the board of satisfactorily meeting the required number of continuing education hours established by the board or of qualifying for a waiver.
(1)
Proof in the form of attendance certificates, diplomas, canceled checks, or class rosters accompanied with a course program, or other documentation acceptable to the board must be submitted.
(2)
The board is the final determining authority as to the acceptability of specific continuing education documentation or waiver qualification.
C.
The following acts are unprofessional conduct and are subject to disciplinary action under Minnesota Statutes, section 156.081, subdivision 2, clause (11):
(1)
failure to meet minimum continuing education credit hour requirements for biennial license renewal;
(2)
failure to submit adequate proof of continuing education attendance within 30 days of a board request; and
D.
Excess continuing education credit hours may not be banked or carried forward into the next license renewal cycle.
E.
For disciplinary purposes, the board may direct a licensee to take additional continuing education, in specific disciplines, over and above the general continuing education requirements for relicensure.
Subp. 9.
Reinstatement of expired license.
A person wishing to reinstate an expired license under Minnesota Statutes, section 156.071, shall furnish proof that the person meets continuing education requirements of their current state of residency and that those requirements are equal to Minnesota requirements, or otherwise provide documentation to the board of having met Minnesota continuing education requirements for each year the license was expired, up to five years maximum, or provide proof of enrollment in a qualified graduate or residency program during the period the license was expired.
Statutory Authority:
MS s 214.12
History:
20 SR 860
Published Electronically:
October 2, 2007
Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes