Florida Massage Therapy Ebook Continuing Education

mandated by such board. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the board, or the department when there is no board, may approve by rule alternative methods of obtaining continuing education credits in risk management. The alternative methods may include attending a board meeting at which another licensee is disciplined, serving as a volunteer expert witness for the department in a disciplinary case, or serving as a member of a probable cause panel following the expiration of a board member’s term. Other boards within the Division of Medical Quality Assurance, or the department if there is no board, may adopt rules granting continuing education hours in risk management for attending a board meeting at which another licensee is disciplined, for serving as a volunteer expert witness for the department in a disciplinary case, or for serving as a member of a probable cause panel following the expiration of a board member’s term. (7) The boards, or the department when there is no board, shall require the completion of a 2-hour course relating to prevention of medical errors as part of the biennial renewal process. The 2-hour course counts toward the total number of continuing education hours required for the profession. The course must be approved by the board or department, as appropriate, and must include a study of root-cause analysis, error reduction and prevention, and patient safety. In addition, the course approved by the Board of Medicine and the Board of Osteopathic Medicine must include information relating to the five most misdiagnosed conditions during the previous biennium, as determined by the board. If the course is being offered by a facility licensed pursuant to chapter 395 for its employees, the board may approve up to 1 hour of the 2-hour course to be specifically related to error reduction and prevention methods used in that facility. (8) The respective boards within the jurisdiction of the department, or the department when there is no board, may adopt rules to provide for the use of approved videocassette courses, not to exceed 5 hours per subject, to fulfill the continuing education requirements of the professions they regulate. Such rules shall provide for prior approval of the board, or the department when there is no board, of the criteria for and content of such courses and shall provide for a videocassette course validation form to be signed by the vendor and the licensee and submitted to the department, along with the license renewal application, for continuing education credit. (9) Any board that currently requires continuing education for renewal of a license, or the department if there is no board, shall adopt rules to establish the criteria for continuing education courses. The rules may provide that up to a maximum of 25 percent of the required continuing education hours can be fulfilled by the performance of pro bono services to the indigent or to underserved populations or in areas of critical need within the state where the licensee practices. The board, or the department if there is no board, must require that any pro bono services be approved in advance in order to receive credit for continuing education under this subsection. The standard for determining indigency shall be that recognized by the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines produced by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. The rules may provide for approval by the board, or the department if there is no board, that a part of the continuing education hours can be fulfilled

department the wallet-size identification card and the wall card if the licensee’s license is issued in error or is revoked. (3) (a) The board, or the department when there is no board, may refuse to issue an initial license to any applicant who is under investigation or prosecution in any jurisdiction for an action that would constitute a violation of this chapter or the professional practice acts administered by the department and the boards, until such time as the investigation or prosecution is complete, and the time period in which the licensure application must be granted or denied shall be tolled until 15 days after the receipt of the final results of the investigation or prosecution. (b) If an applicant has been convicted of a felony related to the practice or ability to practice any health care profession, the board, or the department when there is no board, may require the applicant to prove that his or her civil rights have been restored. (c) In considering applications for licensure, the board, or the department when there is no board, may require a personal appearance of the applicant. If the applicant is required to appear, the time period in which a licensure application must be granted or denied shall be tolled until such time as the applicant appears. However, if the applicant fails to appear before the board at either of the next two regularly scheduled board meetings, or fails to appear before the department within 30 days if there is no board, the application for licensure shall be denied. (4) When any administrative law judge conducts a hearing pursuant to the provisions of chapter 120 with respect to the issuance of a license by the department, the administrative law judge shall submit his or her recommended order to the appropriate board, which shall thereupon issue a final order. The applicant for licensure may appeal the final order of the board in accordance with the provisions of chapter 120. (5) A privilege against civil liability is hereby granted to any witness for any information furnished by the witness in any proceeding pursuant to this section, unless the witness acted in bad faith or with malice in providing such information. (6) As a condition of renewal of a license, the Board of Medicine, the Board of Osteopathic Medicine, the Board of Chiropractic Medicine, and the Board of Podiatric Medicine shall each require licensees which they respectively regulate to periodically demonstrate their professional competency by completing at least 40 hours of continuing education every 2 years. The boards may require by rule that up to 1 hour of the required 40 or more hours be in the area of risk management or cost containment. This provision shall not be construed to limit the number of hours that a licensee may obtain in risk management or cost containment to be credited toward satisfying the 40 or more required hours. This provision shall not be construed to require the boards to impose any requirement on licensees except for the completion of at least 40 hours of continuing education every 2 years. Each of such boards shall determine whether any specific continuing education requirements not otherwise mandated by law shall be mandated and shall approve criteria for, and the content of, any continuing education

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Book Code: MFL1225

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