CONTINUING EDUCATION APPROVAL PROGRAM

Program Overview

 

The National Association of Nurse Practitioners in Women's Health (NPWH) is a national membership organization for nurse practitioners. The NPWH mission is to assure the provision of quality health care to women of all ages by nurse practitioners. In support of this mission, the NPWH Continuing Education Approval Program is committed to endorsing, facilitating, providing, and approving continuing education activities for advanced practice nurses.

 

Organizations requesting NPWH approval of continuing education activities must support the purpose, mission and goals of NPWH. All continuing education activities must be developed based on the assessed needs of nurse practitioners.

 

Purpose: The Continuing Education Approval Program will provide, approve, endorse and facilitate educational opportunities designed to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills, professional performance, and relationships that nurse practitioners use to provide individualized, comprehensive, and high-quality services for women, families, communities, the general public and/or the profession. The content will go beyond what is taught in basic preparation for practice.

 

Target Audience: NPWH CE approved activities are designed to primarily meet the educational needs of nurse practitioners while addressing the needs of other health care providers, including physicians, nurse midwives, and physician assistants, involved in providing health care to women. The primary audience for NPWH sponsored educational activities is individuals in the United States; however, the content of these activities is also relevant to the broader, international community, and NPWH supports making educational content accessible to this broader audience.

 

Content Areas: Approved CE activities reflect the breadth of topics encompassed in women’s health including family planning, contraception, sexually transmitted diseases and infections, menopause, urogenital disorders, sexuality, cancer prevention and detection, abortion, infertility, pregnancy, reproductive genetics, as well as the primary health care needs of women.

 

NPWH places a priority on approving practical, clinically relevant education and training on the most current diagnostic and therapeutic practices and information on current health care trends and new technologies for enhancing clinical expertise of nurse practitioners. Activities must be designed and implemented based on the most current scientific evidence-based knowledge.

 

Educational goals and CE activity learning objectives must be developed based on the results of needs assessment data from multiple sources including requests from nurse practitioners in clinical practice, expert opinion, membership surveys, and research reviews.

 

Type of Activities: NPWH approves a broad range of CE opportunities and instructional methods and media. The instructional methods and media chosen by the provider should be suited to meeting the objectives of the specific educational activity. Educational approaches include traditional CE strategies such as live conferences and workshops and visiting faculty programs, as well as self-directed learning opportunities such as enduring materials, Internet Web casts, and CD-ROMs.

 

NPWH approves educational activities developed by with other organizations sharing a common mission and/or educational objectives. Organizations seeking NPWH approval must adhere to all NPWH standards for CE development.

 

Organizations seeking NPWH approval for a CE activity must use a variety of methods to evaluate the effectiveness of its educational offerings, to measure achievement of the activity goals and objectives, and to meet the continuing educational needs of its intended audience.

 

Expected Results: NPWH approved CE activities provide participants with the education and skills necessary to enhance the clinical care of women.

 

Activity Evaluation: NPWHapproved CE activities should beassessed by the provider to determine the effectiveness of the activities. A variety of methods, including pre-tests, post-tests, written participant comments, structured interviews, informal conversations with participants, and monitoring indicators of change in practice habits related to content areas are appropriate depending upon the type of activity to be evaluated. Trends identified within pre-tests, post-tests, evaluation results and participant comments are used to make appropriate content changes and updates to educational curricula. Post-activity reports are used to enhance the logistics of the planning processes for future activities.

 

            The enclosed materials are provided to guide organizations developing continuing education program programs for NPWH approval. The application information will be used by NPWH reviewers to evaluate submissions to determine the appropriateness of content and quality of objectives, speakers, and allotted time, as well as on principles of teaching and learning.

 

            Programs approved by NPWH must be fair, balanced, and free of commercial bias or product endorsement. The NPWH Continuing Education Approval Program is committed to full compliance with all applicable regulations and guidelines concerning commercial support of continuing education programs, including:

            NPWH’s standards for commercial support for continuing education

            ACCME's Standards for Commercial Support of Continuing Medical Education.

            The Office of Inspector General (OIG): Compliance Program Guidance for Pharmaceutical Manufacturers.

            PhRMA Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals.

            FDA: Guidance for Industry Supported Scientific and Educational Activities.

            AMA: Guidelines on Gifts to Physicians from Industry.

            ANA: Code of Ethics for Nurses

 

We will provide more detailed information on these guidelines, on request.

 

Providers are expected to complete and send to NPWH an evaluation of the completed educational activity. In addition to the provider evaluation of the activity, NPWH requires a summary of participant evaluation of the program, as well as a copy of the registration form/participant roster, to be submitted within 30 days following the program.

 

No packet will be accepted less than 2 weeks prior to the scheduled date. Programs are not reviewed/approved retroactively.

 

Please refer questions about the status of your application to Nancy Breton, NPWH CE Coordinator, at (202) 543-9693 x1, or email: info@NPWH.org. Contact Susan Rawlins, MS, RNC, NP, Consultant for Continuing Education, at (903) 786-5527 or email, srawnlinsnp@gmail.com for questions specific to the development of your packet/program.

 

This packet includes copies of the following forms for your use or adaptation:

 

·                                Application Form

·                                Speaker Bio-Data Sheet

·                                Speaker Disclosure & Content Validation Form

·                                Program Description

·                                Sample Certificate of Completion

·                                Commercial Support Policy

 

 

 

Guidelines for NPWH Continuing Education Approval

 

Acceptable NP Content Areas: Professional continuing education (CE) includes a wide range of activities designed to enhance learners’ knowledge of direct and indirect care issues. For NPs, CE content should go beyond that obtained in their basic nursing and NP preparation. Examples of content not acceptable for NP CE credit include BLS/CPR, product promotion, self-improvement, or financial gain.

 

Pharmacology Content: Providers should identify pharmacology CE content. NPWH defines pharmacology content as approved continuing education material that addresses the pharmacotherapeutic process involved in any of the 6 steps of rational treatment as described the World Health Organizations Guide to Good Prescribing: A Practical Manual, or any of the 7 steps of Rational Prescribing described in Katzung’s Basic and Clinical Pharmacology.

 

WHO Guide to Good Prescribing: 6 steps of rational treatment

 

 

Katzung’s Rational Prescribing

 

 

Contact Hours: NPWH approves contact hours, which are equivalent to 60 minutes of learning. Most NP certifying bodies and regulatory agencies requirements are stated in terms of contact hours. The term “CEU” is not used to designate contact hours and is not interchangeable with the term CE.  

 

Required program length: A CE program should include at least 0.5 - one half contact hour (30 minutes) of learning. Credit will not be awarded for less than 0.5 contact hour. Credit is awarded only for time the educational presentation and for time devoted to questions and answers, which allows for open dialogue on the topic. Time allotted for questions should be appropriate to the topic and content period. Credit is not awarded for time spent in introductory remarks, breaks, product exhibits, or program evaluation. 

 

Attendance verification: Providers must document how participant attendance will be verified. 

 

Notifications: The following notifications (cancellation, ADA statement, Equal opportunity statement, refund policy, and disclaimer) must appear in program brochures and syllabi:

 

Cancellation: “The [provider name] reserves the right to cancel this activity due to unforeseen circumstances. In the event of such cancellation, the full enrollment fee will be returned to the registrant.”

(This is for the protection of the NPWH and the Program Director in the event of necessary cancellation.)

 

ADA Statement: “Accommodations for Disabilities: Please notify the [Provider name and address and phone number] a minimum of ten working days in advance of the event if a reasonable accommodation for a disability is needed.”

 

Equal Opportunity Statement: “Events and activities approved by NPWH are available without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, disability, or age, as provided by law and in accordance with NPWH respect for personal dignity.”

 

Refund Policy: Please state in the brochure your refund policy. Identify any administrative charges and the time frames that apply should a participant cancel his/her registration prior to the activity.

 

Disclaimer: The content and views presented in this educational activity are those of the faculty/authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the NPWH, [commercial supporter], or [CE provider]. This material is prepared based upon a review of multiple sources of information, but it is not exhaustive of the subject matter. Therefore, healthcare professionals and other individuals should review and consider other publications and materials on the subject matter before relying solely upon the information contained within this educational activity to make clinical decisions about individual patients.

 

 

Enduring Materials: Enduring materials developed for continuing education credit will meet all NPWH Continuing Education Approval Program standards for CE development, including the standards for commercial support. Contact hours should be by pretest or policy standard. NPWH supports the following, on average 5000 words plus 5 post test questions should equal 1 contact hour depending upon the difficulty of the material, graphics presented etc. The following information should be presented to the learner prior to initiating the learning activity:

1) intended audience; 2) CE approval period; 3) estimated time to complete the activity; 4) program description/identification of need; 5) educational objectives; 6) accreditation statement; 7) faculty disclosures; 8) disclosure of unlabeled use; 9) disclaimer information; 10) Successful completion requirements;
11) Commercial support

 

Claimed Credit: Learners should claim credit only for the portion of the program they attended and successfully completed.

 

Required Planning Criteria: Certain criteria are universally expected by NPWH, as well as by certification and licensing bodies when considering the appropriateness and quality of a program. The following information should be clearly documented in your application for activity approval:

·        The activity planning committee should include at least one nurse practitioner.

·        The intended audience and how the need for the topic was determined

·        For a multi-day program, an overall set of goals or purpose for the activity

·        The measurable participant objectives for each presentation in the program that support achievement of the program goals and relate to the identified participant need. For instance, whether participants should be able to list, perform, discuss, or describe some topic after the program.

·        The content should be summarized/identified so that it is clear how it relates towards learning objectives achievement. The time allowed to cover each area of content/objective must be reasonable to allow for adequate coverage.

·        Content should be based on the best available evidence and current references (5 years or less, depending on the rate with which knowledge regarding the topic is changing), regardless of the program’s format.

·        Each speaker should be qualified by education and/or experience to cover the specific topic identified.  Nurse practitioner speakers are preferred since they posses an in-depth understanding the application of the information into the NP role. This is an important factor when choosing the faculty for your program.

·        Each participant should evaluate the program, indicating, at a minimum, the degree to which specific objectives were met, the speaker’s expertise, the teaching methods, achievement of personal objectives, appropriateness of content to advanced practice nursing, any perceived content bias, and the environment. 

·        The provider should evaluate the activity to include: logistics, participant flow, exhibitor responses, faculty feedback, planning committee comments, etc.

 

Fair and Balanced Programming: Whether or not providers receive educational grants from commercial interests, providers are responsible for ensuring that the program provides fair and balanced coverage of the topic. NPWH can provide more guidance on this issue, on request, based on FDA regulations regarding vendor participation in professional educational activities and other standards. However, it is important that:

·        All educational grant money or other financial or in-kind support is acknowledged. Any program announcements, invitations, or flyers should identify industry support, without mention of specific products and without implying that the supporter is the program provider. 

·        Faculty/authors, planning committee members, staff and any others who may control the activity’s content disclose any relationships with industry (speaker’s bureaus, research, advisory boards, etc).

·        Any identified conflicts of interest are resolved prior to the presentation of the program.

·        Providers maintain control of the content, faculty selection, and program evaluation.

·        Educational activities are separated from promotional functions (exhibits, etc).

·        Program evaluations include measurement of any perceived commercial bias in the activity.

 

The following forms are provided: application form, speaker biographical data sheet (to ensure experience/education related to topic), faculty disclosure form (to identify any potential conflict of interest), program evaluation form (to measure program outcomes including any detected bias), content validation form (to validate fair balanced content), and commercial support announcement (depicting correct way to acknowledge support). If, when planning a program, any potential source of bias or conflict is identified, the provider must ensure that content is fair and balanced. NPWH reviewers also assist in the process, as they consider the balance of proposed content. Please submit samples of any program-related material, including announcements, certificates, etc.

 

Record Maintenance: Program providers must maintain records for at least five years. Records should include a copy of the approved program, any related announcement, program date/time, participant roster, credit awarded, evaluation summary, certificate copy, etc. .

 

Post-Program Submission: Within one month of the program, a summary program evaluation and copy of attendance roster should be submitted to NPWH. Original evaluation sheets will not be accepted in lieu of the summary. It is the responsibility of the program provider/sponsor to evaluate each educational activity. Rosters must include a count for total participants, total number of NP participants with name, address, and email information for each NP. Please do NOT submit participants’ full social security numbers to NPWH as identifiers.

 

 

Review Process: A member of the NPWH CE staff promptly reviews all packets received. Submitters are contacted if additional information is needed. The complete CE application is then forwarded to two members of the Continuing Education Approval Program for content review and to assess compliance with NPWH standards. Based on the CE review, programs are either “approved” or “not approved”. Examples of reasons for non-approval include determination that the program: does not go beyond basic NP education, is designed for product promotion, does not include qualified faculty, or is otherwise educationally unsound. An Appeal can be requested in writing, within 30 days of denial; only the original application will be reviewed during an Appeal.

 

As part of the review each program is assigned an ID number, which is sent to the program provider. This number must be referenced with any/all communications and reports.

 

Credit for Poster Session: CE credit may be approved for poster sessions held in conjunction with “live” programs of at least 1 contact hour in duration. Generally, only 1 contact hour will be approved for a poster session. The formula used to determine actual poster session credit awards 0.1 contact hour (i.e. 60 minutes) per poster. There should be at least five posters submitted for credit. To request poster session credit, list title, presenter(s) name/credentials, and objective(s) for each poster in the CE application. 

 

 

Fee Schedule: Please call (202) 543-9693 for fee schedule.