American Heart Association Courses
Q. How do I enroll in an American Heart Class?
A. Please contact the Center for Education & Organizational Development Office at 304-598-4063 to enroll.
Q. What type of CPR class do I need?
A. RN, LPN, CA, Physician, paramedic, EMT, nursing student, med students: need Healthcare provider level SA, telemtry tech, mental health specialist, daycare worker, community person: Heartsaver first aid.
Q. Can I complete a BLS/ACLS class online?
A. Students can complete an online cpr class. They must make sure that it is done through American Heart Association (www.onlineaha.com). This online course costs around $25.0 and still requires an instructor skills check-off.
Q. Where can I come to pick up my pre-work for PALS, ACLS, etc.?
A. We are located on the first floor of the Rosenbaum Family House in room 120.
Q. I need to register for an ACLS, PALS, BLS, Heartsaver First Aid Course, etc. who do I need to call?
A. Please call the main Nursing Education number at 304-598-4063 and someone will help you register for those courses.
Q. My ACLS, BLS, PALS card is expired, do I need to retake a Full Provider course?
A. Unless your card has been expired for a number of years, or you feel like your skills warrant the taking of a Full Provider Course, you can enroll in a renewal course to reinstate your card.
Q. What if I don’t have access to a computer or printer to complete my ACLS or PALS prework?
A. Please contact the Center for Education & Organizational Development Office at 304-598-4063 to make arrangements.
Q How do I get NRP certified?
A. If a course is being offered on Children’s Hospital, you can contact Brenda Pomraning to enroll. If unable to get in a class you can access the NRP website and take the online course and then be checked off on the practicum by an instructor from the Center for Education & Organizational Development or Children’s Hospital.
Nursing Services Orientation
Q. If my new employee used to work here do they need to attend Nursing Service Orientation?
A. If they left and were rehired within one year, then they are exempt from attending Nursing Service Orientation. They will be assigned a Computer Based Learning Module for review.
Q. If I have a LPN who graduated and is now a GN/RN, do they need to attend Nursing Service Orientation?
A. No, they will only need to take the Medication Safety and Calculation Quiz.
Q. What happens if a new employee can’t attend a portion of Nursing Service Orientation?
A. Contact Heather Malcolm MSN, RN, Extension 73403 to arrange alternative scheduling.
Q. Why was my new employee not scheduled CPR renewal classes during their first week of employment?
A. They have a current American Heart Association BLS Renewal Card and it does not expire within the next 6 months.
Q. My new employee has lost their Topic Validation form for Nursing Service Orientation, what should I do?
A. This is form is required to be part of the employee’s record to validate attendance in Nursing Service Orientation. If they have lost the form, contact the Center for Education & Organizational Development and they will verify employee’s attendance prior to replacement of the form.
Q. Why was Nursing Service Orientation cancelled?
A. Nursing Service Orientation will be held for equal to or greater than 3 individuals. If a session was cancelled the new employee will be either scheduled for the next session or be assigned the NSO CBL’s (upon discretion of their manager/supervisor). Physical Therapy/Occupational Therapy session scheduled on Friday mornings will not be held for less than 5 individuals.
Nursing Continuing Education Requirements and Licensure
Q. Will I continue to renew my RN license annually?
A. Yes. You will continue to renew your license annually by October 31st. However, you only report your continuing education (CE) activities at the time you RENEW your license.
Q. What is a contact hour? Is it the same as a CEU?
A. State Board Requirement: A contact hour is equivalent to 50 consecutive minutes of instruction. A CEU (continuing education unit) equals 10 contact hours or 500 minutes of instruction. The official unit of measure for CE in West Virginia is the contact hour.
At West Virginia University Hospitals continuing Nursing Education is offered through the West Virginia Nurses Association, which is approved as a provider of continuing nursing education by the ANCC. A contact hour is equivalent to 60 consecutive minutes of instruction.
Q. What is the difference between a contact hour, a stroke credit and a trauma credit?
A. A contact hour is the increment of time required by the State Board of Nursing. A stroke credit is the increment of time required by persons identified as a member of the Stroke Team to maintain Stroke Center Certification. A trauma credit is the increment of time required by persons identified as a member of the Trauma Team to maintain Trauma Center Certification.
Q. Will college credit be accepted to meet CE requirements?
A. Yes. Courses provided by an accredited institution of higher learning for which academic credit is awarded can be used to satisfy the CE requirements, providing they are relevant to your nursing practice. The following formula is used to calculate contact hours from credit hours:
1 Quarter hour = 10 contact hours
1 Semester hour = 15 contact hours
Q. What are the various ways I can earn CE hours?
A. You may:
- Attend approved CE activities, workshops, seminars and conferences dealing with issues related to your nursing practice;
- Enroll at a college or university in courses relevant to your nursing practice;
- Take home study/correspondence courses or complete the continuing education offerings in professional nursing journals, and/or;
- Read professional journals and other available nursing literature. (You may identify 2 of the 12 contact hours required in each reporting period as learner designed. This means that a total of 2 hours of reading or other programmed instruction may be claimed although it has not been approved for CE for nurses and a certificate was not received.
You should be certain that you can identify the contributions of the learning activity as they relate to your professional growth. You must keep a record of the hours claimed which includes name of the article or instructional unit, publisher/author and date of the publication. You will need this information if you are audited.
With the new legislative rules beginning in 2008, completion of 12 contact hours of CE may be accomplished by:
- Completing 12 contact hours of CE from an approved CE provider; or
- Completing 6 contact hours of CE from an approved CE provider which may include 2 contact hours of self-study and one of the following completed during the reporting period:
- National certification initially earned or in effect the entire reporting period;
- Completion of a nursing research project as principal investigator, co-investigator or project director;
- Published a nursing related article in a national nursing or healthcare journal;
- Developed and presented a professional nursing education presentation;
- Participated as a clinical preceptor for at least one student or one new employee undergoing orientation and have one hundred-twenty hours of one-on-one relationship as a clinical preceptor during the reporting period;
- Evidence of satisfactory evaluation of employment that covers at least six months of the reporting period; or
- Completion of an approved nursing refresher or re-entry course.
Q. Do I have to take CE classes each year?
A. Yes. You may take 12 contact hours all at one time through one class or spread the hours over the reporting period by taking several classes.
Q. If I accumulate more than the required number of contact hours in a reporting period can I use them during the next reporting period?
A. No. Contact hours or other credits may not be carried forward to the next reporting period.
Q. Are there any exemptions to the requirement?
A.
- A licensee obtaining a license for the first time in West Virginia during the reporting period is exempt from the CE requirements for the entire reporting period except for the two contact hour CE requirement in the area of end of life care including pain management.
- A licensee who is a government employee assigned to duty outside the United States or serving on active duty in the military for more than three months of any reporting period is exempt from the continuing education requirements for the entire reporting period.
- Licensees who qualify for a medical exemption due to personal or family illness or disability will be permitted to apply for exemption. (This exemption may not extend beyond a single reporting period and may be prorated based on the length of illness or disability.)
Q. What records will I have to keep?
A. For CE: You must keep all certificates received after completion of a CE activity as well as transcripts or other proof of completion.
Q. How long should I keep CE records?
A. All evidence to support completion of CE offerings you attended must be retained for 2 years after the date it is reported to the Board. You may be audited on this information at any time during that 2 year period.
Q. When do I send in CE information?
A. DO NOT SEND CERTIFICATES OF ATTENDANCE FOR CE WITH YOUR RENEWAL APPLICATION. The Board will not retain or return the certificates. You will only send certificates, transcripts or other proof of CE if you receive notice that you are being audited.
Q. What is an audit?
A. An audit is an official review by the Board of CE offerings you attended. Each year a random sampling of licensees will be audited to verify CE activities. If you are audited you will be required to submit legible photocopies of certificates, transcripts or other documentation of completed CE activities.