M E M O R A N D U M

 

Date:                January, 2000

 

To:                   Applicants for Approved-Program Provider of EMS continuing education

 

From:               Donald E. White, Coordinator Education and Training

 

Subject:            Application for Approved-Program Provider

 

 

Enclosed you will find a Approved-Program Provider Manual dated January, 2000.  This manual will assist you in understanding the requirements of a approved-program provider and determining the components necessary to submit with the application for approval.  The appendix to this manual includes a copy of the Kansas administrative regulations applicable to approved-program providers.

 

Kansas administrative regulation (K.A.R.) 109-5-3, describes requirements of approved program providers.  K.A.R. 109-1-1 defines continuing education to be "...oriented towards the enhancement of emergency medical services practices, values, skills and knowledge".  Acceptable forms of continuing education and the required components to be put on certificates of attendance are described in K.A.R. 109-5-2.  To assist you in determining the proper amount of continuing education to award, please refer to K.A.R. 109-1-1 and K.A.R. 109-5-1.  K.A.R. 109-11-9 will assist you in selection of qualified instructors and K.A.R. 109-5-3 describes the records you must keep.

 

As an approved-program provider, you are required to submit quarterly reports concerning training you conducted during that quarter.  Please adjust your quarterly reports to coincide with the calendar year.

 

At a minimum, the quarterly report shall include the title of each program conducted, the dates and locations of each program conducted and the amount of continuing education credit awarded for each program conducted and shall be signed by the program coordinator. 

 

If you have questions concerning this issue, or need assistance, please contact me.

 

KANSAS BOARD OF EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES

 

 

 

www.ksbems.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Approved-Program Provider Manual

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Technical Assist Manual

 

for

 

Long Term Approval of Continuing Education Programs

 

January, 2000

 

 

 

 Introduction
Application components
Causes for denial of applications
Course Identification Number (CIN)
Certificates of attendance
Roster of attendance
Verification process
Compliance monitoring
Revocation of program provider
Appeal process

 

Approved-Program Providers

 

Providers of continuing education programs approved by the Kansas Board of EMS on a long-term provider basis is referred to as an Approved-Program Provider.   Achievement of Approved-Program Provider confirms the program is responsive to the needs of the communities of interest, accountable to local medical authority, and strives for self improvement.

 

Organizations which conduct EMS related continuing education or refresher training programs and desire to have these programs recognized for Kansas EMS attendant certification renewal credit may find the long-term approval privilege to be efficient.  Once an organization has been approved by the board, the approved provider may conduct any continuing education program, applicable to EMS, during their approval period.  Rather than submitting each continuing education offering to the board for determinations, the approved-program provider will determine (in accordance with Kansas administrative regulations) applicable continuing education and how much credit to award each offering.

 

Approved continuing education for attendant certification renewal purposes shall be applicable to emergency medical services values, knowledge, skills and practice per K.A.R. 109-1-1(i).

 

Various methods of obtaining continuing education acceptable for EMS attendant certification renewal include seminars, workshops, mini-courses, clinical training, and others as described in K.A.R. 109-5-1(l).

 

The authority to require attendants to submit verification of completing continuing education is granted to the board in KAR 109-5-1(o).  If audited, the attendant will have to submit certificates of attendance documenting proof of completion of continuing education.  The individual is required to keep attendance records of programs they completed for a minimum of three years.  Specific requirements of what must be included on a certificate of attendance is described in K.A.R. 109-5-2(c).

 

Approved-Program Provider Application Process

 

Kansas administrative regulations 109-5-3(b) describes the approved-program provider requirements. 

 

To become an approved-program provider, an application must be made to the Board of EMS at least 3 months prior to the date of the first offering of the program.  The application must include the following components:

 

1.         A completed application form.

 
2.         A continuing education training program management plan which describes how the following requirements will be accomplished.

 

A.        The training program's purpose and educational goals.

 

B.         Training needs assessments.

 

C.        Selection and evaluation of instructors.

 

D.        Provision, selection and evaluation of lab assistants.

 

E.         Provision, maintenance and cleaning of EMS training equipment.


F.         The determination of how the amount of continuing education credit will be awarded for each educational offering.

 

G.        Provision of agenda/schedules and certificates of attendance.

 

H.        Verification of attendance.

 

I.          Training program evaluations review and analyses.

 

J.          Infection control.

 

K.        Quarterly reports to the board.

 

L.         Records which the training program will maintain;

where the records will be maintained; and, how long they will be maintained. At a minimum, the following records shall be maintained:

 

(1).       The educational objectives of each educational offering.

 

(2).       An agenda/schedule of each educational offering.

 

(3).       A list of faculty and their credentials for each educational offering.

 

(4).       Program pre-requisites (if applicable) of each educational offering.

 
(5).       Participant performance requirements (if applicable) of each educational offering.

 

(6).       Master certificates of attendance of each educational offering.

 

(7).       Rosters of attendance of each educational offering.

 

(8).       Completed evaluations of each educational offering.

 

Once the application is received, the board will review it for approval.  If deficient, the application will be returned to the applicant not approved with a description of what needs to be addressed to gain approval.

 

Once approved, the applicant will be issued a program provider number.  This program provider number shall be put on each roster of attendance and each certificate of attendance to be issued to individuals. 

 

The approved program provider shall submit quarterly reports concerning programs they have conducted within that quarter.  The quarterly reports shall be signed by the training program coordinator and shall include the date, title and location of each program offered and the amount of continuing education credit awarded for each offering.

 

Causes For Denial of Applications

 

An application for Approved-Program Provider of continuing education will be denied if the training program does not meet the minimum requirements set forth by Kansas statutes annotated (KSA) and Kansas administrative regulations (KAR); or, if the applicant has a history of providing training and it is determined by the board that the applicant did not maintain quality training.

 

Course Identification Number (CIN)

 

The course identification number (CIN) shall be issued, by the program provider, to each participant attending the educational offerings.  The program provider shall put the CIN on the attendance rosters and on the certificates of attendance.

 

In the case of the approved-program provider, the CIN will remain constant and shall be the program provider number assigned by the board.

 

Certificates of Attendance

 

Certificates of attendance are the individual's form of verification that they attended a continuing education offering.  The certificate of attendance shall contain, at a minimum, the following information:

 
1.         The name of the organization approved as the program provider of the educational offering.

 

2.         The name of the participant.

 

3.         The title of the educational offering.

 

4.         The date of the educational offering.

 

5.         The location of the educational offering.

 

6.         The amount of continuing education credit awarded for the educational offering.

 

7.         The CIN.

 

8.         The signature of the program coordinator.

 
9.         A statement that the organization is approved as an Approved-Program Provider by the Kansas Board of EMS.

 

Roster of Attendance

 

Program providers shall keep a roster of attendance of all participants of the educational offering(s) for a period of not less than three years.  The roster of attendance shall clearly show the title of the subject matter, the date of the educational offering, the location of the educational offering, the CIN, the amount of continuing education awarded, the name of each attendee, and the signature of the program coordinator.

 

The Verification Process

 

The board may audit a program provider.  If such audit occurs, board staff will ask the program provider to submit documentation as requested.  An on-site audit may also be conducted.  Kansas administrative regulation 109-5-3 gives authority to the board to review all records of the continuing education process.

 

Compliance Monitoring

 

Kansas administrative regulation 109-5-3 gives authority to the board to monitor programs offered by program providers for the purpose of evaluating these programs.  When a program is monitored for the purpose of evaluation, the board staff will provide a written summary of their evaluation to the program provider.  A copy of that summary shall be put in the program provider's file.

 

Revocation of Program Provider

 

Following proper fact finding and investigations, the board may withdraw approval of an Approved-Program Provider if the provider violates the regulations or if quality programs are not maintained to the board's satisfaction.

 

Appeal Process

 

If, at any time, a program provider believes the board has taken unwarranted action against them, they may appeal by contacting the administrator and scheduling an appeal.  All appeals shall be heard by the investigations committee of the board.