What's New in Program Approval for Chapters?

Policy & Forms 

Before submitting a new application please take a moment to review the updated policy.

All forms have also been revised; please ensure you use forms that have a dated footer titled “Winter 2013 Update."

Pharmacology Contact Hours

Awarding pharmacology hours is beyond the scope of Program Approval. AACN has chosen not to award specialty continuing education contact hours. 

CE Statement

Our CE statement now includes our state of California provider number.

“The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses is approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider Number 01036. This program has been approved for _____ Contact Hours, Synergy CERP Category _____, File Number _____. “ 

Contact Hour Calculation

Contact hours are now calculated in 50 minute increments.

One contact hour is equal to 50 minutes of program or class time. Class time is calculated by minutes, divided by fifty (50), and rounded down to the nearest tenth (1.2, 1.3, etc.)

Example: 260 minutes of class time divided by 50 = 5.2 CE 

 ACLS and PALS Provider Courses

• Contact hours will be awarded to advanced skilled provider courses such as ACLS and PALS for initial certification only.
  • Nurses attending these courses to renew their certification will not be eligible for contact hours. 
  • AACN does not grant CE for the BLS overview portion of the provider courses.

BLS and PEARS Provider Courses

• BLS and PEARS courses are not eligible for CE.  

Instructor Courses

Contact hours can be awarded for instructor courses including BLS, ACLS, PALS or similar courses.  

Ineligible Course Content for CE

There is a new Ineligible Course Content section in the Program Approval Policy.

Courses include but not be limited to:

• Courses which focus upon self-improvement, changes in attitude, self-therapy, self-awareness, weight loss and yoga.
• Economic courses for financial gain (e.g., investments, retirement, preparing resumes, and techniques for job interviews, etc.)
• Courses designed for lay people.
• Liberal arts courses in music, art, philosophy and others when unrelated to patient/client care.
• Orientation programs — orientation meaning a specific series of activities designed to familiarize employees with the policies and procedures of an institution.
• Courses which focus on personal appearance in nursing.
• CPR, BLS, basic EKG/dysrhythmia and IV therapy courses that are similar to those used to certify licensed vocational nurses to start IVs.
   

You can always provide CERPs via a certificate of attendance for programs not eligible for CE