Chapter 410-9 LICENSED PRACTICAL NURSING EDUCATION PROGRAMS
Rule 410-9-.01 General Information
(1) | A new nursing education program means the initial establishment of a nursing education program or the re-establishment of a closed nursing program. A new nursing education program is approved for one location or address only. |
(2) | A new
nursing education program in this state shall have applied for and received
Board approval as provided in Rule
410-9-.02 prior to the initial
enrollment of students.
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(3) | Any program, which has had Board approval as of the effective date of this Rule shall be permitted to continue operation, unless its approval has been withdrawn. |
(4) | Any program whose approval status has been withdrawn pursuant to Rule 410-9-.03, must apply for approval as a new nursing education program as provided in Rule 410-9-.02. |
(5) | All nursing education programs and affiliated campus locations will be issued the same NCSBN program code number. |
(6) | Program Approval
Statuses:
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Rule 410-9-.02 New Nursing Education Program Development
(1) | Definitions.
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(2) | At
least twelve (12) months prior to the initial enrollment of students, the
administrator of a sponsoring agency considering establishment of a nursing
education program must submit a letter to the Board indicating intent to
develop a program. The letter of intent shall include the following
information:
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(3) | At least ten (10) months prior to the
initial enrollment of students, the administrator of the sponsoring agency
shall submit to the Board the following information:
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(4) | After the Board has received
and reviewed the letter of intent and the materials pursuant to Rule
410-9-.02(2) and (3), the Board shall conduct site visits to the proposed
nursing education program and all of its affiliating clinical facilities.
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(5) | At least
eight (8) months prior to the initial enrollment of students, the following
materials shall be submitted as Report I:
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(6) | At least four (4) months prior
to the initial enrollment of students, the following materials pertaining to
each course to be offered during the first half of the curriculum shall be
submitted as Report II:
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(7) | At least one (1) month prior to the initial enrollment of students, the completed Nursing Faculty Summary Sheet, and the Nursing Faculty Qualification Records, and evidence of Georgia Registered Nurse licensure of the Practical Nursing Department Director and all nursing faculty shall be submitted as Report III. All nursing faculty must demonstrate the qualifications as set forth in Rule 410-9-.07. |
(8) | Provisional Approval shall be considered
after the Board, reviews Reports I, II, and III and must be granted prior to
the enrollment of students.
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(9) | No later than
one (1) month after the initial enrollment of students, the following materials
shall be submitted as Report IV:
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(10) | The program shall be eligible for Full Approval if it has demonstrated compliance with all Board Laws and Rules, and if 80% of its initial graduating class have passed their initial licensing examination after graduation during the period of Provisional Approval. |
(11) | The program shall be
placed on Conditional Approval if it has demonstrated noncompliance with any of
the Board Laws or Rules, or if less than 80% of its initial graduating class
have passed their initial licensing examination during the period of
Provisional Approval.
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(12) | Graduates of a nursing education program which does not have Board approval shall be denied admission to the licensure examination. |
(13) | No later than six
(6) months after the initial enrollment of students, the following materials
pertaining to each course to be offered during the remainder of the program's
curriculum shall be submitted as Report V:
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(14) | It is the responsibility of the sponsoring agency to electronically submit each required report to the board at least four (4) weeks prior to the scheduled board meeting at which the report is to be considered. |
Rule 410-9-.03 Changes in Approval Status Categories and Grounds
(1) | Conditional Approval may be imposed on a new nursing education program pursuant to Rule 410-9-.02(11). |
(2) | Conditional Approval may be imposed on a
nursing education program when review of the most recent annual report, the
most recent site visit report, the most recent annualized licensing examination
passing percentage for its graduates on their initial examination, or any other
pertinent data reveals noncompliance with Board Laws or Rules.
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(3) | Conditional Approval status shall be
conveyed to the program in writing.
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(4) | If the deficiencies have not been corrected within one (1) year from the date of Conditional Approval status notification, the program's approval status shall be Withdrawn. |
(5) | Programs placed on Conditional Approval status must notify currently enrolled and potential students in writing of the program's Conditional Approval status. This statement must include the possibility that the program may have its approval Withdrawn at the end of one (1) year from the date of Conditional Approval notification, and that the Board may require the transfer of remaining students to other nursing programs to complete their programs of study. |
(6) | Withdrawn Approval. The Board may
Withdraw Approval status from a nursing education program which has
demonstrated continued noncompliance with any of the Board Laws or Rules.
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(7) | With any change in approval status the program sponsors may present any evidence for the Board to consider addressing the alleged deficiencies in writing and/or appearance before the board. |
(8) | The Board may grant or
impose the following changes in approval status categories.
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(9) | The following deficiencies shall be
inclusive of, but not limited to, those which the Board considers grounds for a
change in approval status if the deficiencies are not corrected within the time
period specified in Rules
410-9-.02.
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Rule 410-9-.04 Organization and Administration
(1) | A written organizational plan shall indicate the lines of authority, responsibility and communication of the nursing education program to its governing body; to its clinical affiliates; to its advisory committee, and within the nursing education program itself. |
(2) | The authority and responsibility for the administration of the nursing education shall be placed with the program director as approved in Rule 410-9-.07(3). |
(3) | Any agency or institution that is utilized by a practical nursing education program shall be one that is authorized to conduct business in the state of its location. |
(4) | The length of the curriculum shall be consistent with the requirements as provided in Rule 410-9-.06(3). |
(5) | The availability of faculty for directing and critiquing students during theoretical and clinical learning activities shall be consistent with the requirements as provided in Rules 410-9-.07(1) and 410-9-.08(7). |
Rule 410-9-.05 Purpose, Philosophy, and Objectives
(1) | The nursing education program's purpose, philosophy, and objectives shall be written by the nursing faculty and approved by the school's administration and the program's advisory committee. They shall form the basis for planning, implementing, and evaluating the total program curriculum. |
Rule 410-9-.06 Curriculum
(1) | Curriculum
refers to a total written plan of theoretical and clinical learning activities
which shall result in the attainment of the nursing education program's
objectives by graduates of the program.
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(2) |
The curriculum emphasis should be on the utilization of the nursing process in
the provision of care by practical nurses to patient/clients and their families
throughout the life cycle in a variety of health care settings for:
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(3) | Length of the Curriculum. The program of
study shall be consistent with the program's learning objectives and methods of
instruction, except that:
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(4) | Curriculum Objectives. There shall be written statements of specific, measurable, theoretical and clinical outcomes and competencies for each course in the curriculum which shall be achieved by students enrolled in the program. The curriculum objectives shall be in accordance with the nursing education program objectives. |
(5) | Minimum Curriculum Content. An approved
program of instruction or its equivalent shall contain no less than six hundred
eighty-five (685) clock hours of theoretical nursing and general education
content, and no less than four hundred eighty-five (485) clock hours of planned
clinical practice for each student. Said program shall include the following
subjects:
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(6) | The curriculum's effectiveness shall be
evaluated at the specific intervals indicated by the Board to determine and
verify in writing the attainment of the program's objectives.
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Rule 410-9-.07 Nursing Faculty
(1) | Number of Nursing Faculty. An adequate
number of nurse faculty members, as necessary for quality education, must be
employed to carry out the nursing education program's purpose and objectives.
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(2) | Qualifications for Employment.
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(3) | Faculty
Functions.
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(4) | Faculty Organization.
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Rule 410-9-.08 Preceptor and Preceptorial Learning Activities
(1) | Definitions.
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(2) | The preceptor shall be selected through the cooperative effort between the nursing faculty and the clinical affiliate representatives. |
(3) | Preceptorial
learning activities may be included in a curriculum when the following criteria
are met:
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(4) | Prior to and throughout the preceptorial learning activities, faculty shall interact with preceptors, individually or in a group, to clarify roles, learning activities, and the critique/evaluation of student learning and progress. |
(5) | The preceptor/student ratio shall not exceed the ratio of one (1) preceptor to two (2) student practical nurses in the hospital, doctor's office, or clinics, or one (1) preceptor to four (4) student practical nurses in the nursing home. |
(6) | The preceptor may evaluate students' clinical performance after the students' initial assessments by the nursing program's faculty. |
(7) | The preceptor and students must have a readily available designated nursing faculty member who is responsible for the preceptor learning activities. |
(8) | The preceptorial learning activities must be scheduled on The Clinical Rotation Plan pursuant to Rule 410-9-.02(1)(e). |
(9) | There shall be written Clinical Learning Focus Objectives pursuant to Rule 410-9-.02(1)(d) for all preceptorial learning activities. |
Rule 410-9-.09 School Requirements: Rules and Policies
(1) | School Rules:
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(2) | School Policies:
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Rule 410-9-.10 Educational Facilities and Clinical Affiliates
(1) | Educational facilities, campus
classrooms, nursing practice laboratory, and the library for the program shall
be available to meet the objectives of the program and the needs of the
students and faculty.
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(2) | Clinical Affiliates.
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Rule 410-9-.11 Board Site Visits to Nursing Education Programs and Their Clinical Affiliates
(1) | Site visits to the practical nursing education program and clinical affiliates shall be conducted by board representatives to verify compliance with board laws and rules. All requested documentation shall be received by the Board prior to the site visit. |
(2) | Site visits are conducted:
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Rule 410-9-.12 Reports and Records
(1) | Reports and records shall be required of each practical nursing education program for documentation of compliance with applicable Georgia law and Board rules. |
(2) | Reports submitted to the Board from
schools by the practical nursing education program's nurse director shall
include the following reports:
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(3) | Reports to Schools from the Board. The program's Annualized Licensing Examination Passing Percentage Report is prepared by the board's nursing education consultant and covers the calendar year from January 1st through December 31st of the preceding year. |
(4) | Program Records.
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(5) | Student records. Students currently enrolled shall have a file which includes, but not limited to, admission materials, documentation of theoretical and clinical progression in the program's curriculum plan, and health records. |
(6) | Final program transcript. Transcripts shall identify each course in the curriculum plan, include the earned grades and explain the grading system, and state the theoretical and clinical hours the student was present for each course. |
Rule 410-9-.13 Program Changes Requiring Board Approval and Board Notification and Procedures for Approval
(1) | The following proposed changes in the
practical nursing education program require board approval prior to their
implementation. The program shall electronically submit the information to the
board at least four (4) weeks prior to the board meeting at which the changes
will be considered.
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(2) | The following changes in the practical nursing education program may be implemented by the program, but require board notification within thirty (30) days of the implementation. Practical Nursing Education Program name change requires the former name, new name, and effective date. |
Rule 410-9-.14 Guidelines for Discontinuance of a Nursing Education Program
(1) | After the notification to the board of intent to discontinue the practical nursing education program, the school may not admit new students. |
(2) | The program shall continue to meet the standards for approval until all of the enrolled students have graduated. |
(3) | An institution closing a practical nursing education program shall provide for permanent storage of the transcripts of its graduates and the name, title, department, and address of who is responsible for keeping the records shall be conveyed to the board in writing. |