1754844 Notice of Final Rulemaking making amendments to the continuing education requirements podiatry licensees
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
NOTICE OF FINAL RULEMAKING
The Director of the Department of Health, pursuant to the authority set forth in § 302(14) of the District of Columbia Health Occupations Revision Act of 1985, effective March 25, 1986 (D.C. Law 6-99; D.C. Official Code § 3-1203.02(14) (2007 Repl.)), and Mayor’s Order 98-140, dated August 20, 1998, hereby gives notice of the adoption of the following amendments to chapter 68 (Podiatry) of title 17 (Business, Occupations, and Professions) of the District of Columbia Municipal Regulations (DCMR).
The purpose of the amendments is: to note the change in name of the podiatry examination to the American Podiatric Medical Licensing Examination; to notify licensees that proof of having completed continuing education credits shall be submitted within ten (10) days after it is requested by the Board of Podiatry (Board); to notify licensees that continuing education programs and activities must contribute directly to professional competence in order for them to be approved by the Board; that a continuing education program must be submitted to the Board for approval at least sixty (60) days prior to presentation; that a course agenda for a continuing education program be submitted to the Board for approval no less than thirty (30) days prior to the date the course begins; that the Board may issue and update a list of approved continuing education programs; that an applicant shall have the burden of verifying whether a program is approved by the Board prior to attending the program; that no credit shall be given for business, practice management or internet technology seminars or courses; beginning on or after April 1, 2012 an applicant shall be certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); that the CPR course(s) shall be approved by the Board or provided by a Board-approved sponsor; that an approved CPR course shall be worth a maximum of three (3) continuing education credit hours; to establish guidelines for the maintenance, dissemination, and disposal of health care records; and to set a fee for the cost of copying health care records.
These rules were published as proposed on July 29, 2011 at 58 DCR 6440. The Board adopted the rules as final on September 14, 2011. No comments were received in connection with this notice. No substantive changes have been made to the regulations. A few technical corrections were made, including: (a) replacing the period (.) in subsection 6804.1(b) with a semicolon (;); replaced “credit” with “credits” in the second to last sentence in subsection 6806.4; replacing subsection 6807.2 with subsection 6807.3 as intended in the proposed rulemaking; and fixing a cross-reference in subsection 6807.4 (i.e., § 6907.3 should have been § 6807.3) to correct punctuation errors, spelling errors, and to fix a cross-reference.
These regulations will become effective upon publication of this notice in the D.C. Register.
Chapter 68, PODIATRY, of Title 17, BUSINESS, OCCUPATIONS, AND PROFESSIONS, of the DCMR is amended as follows:
Subsection 6804.1(b) is amended to read as follows:
(b) Receive a passing score on the American Podiatric Medical Licensing Examination (APMLE) part 3 with a passing
score as set by the District of Columbia Board of Podiatry;
Subsection 6806.4 is amended to read as follows:
6806.4 An applicant for renewal of a license shall submit proof pursuant to § 6806.7 of having completed fifty (50) hours of approved continuing education credit during the two (2) year period preceding the date the license expires. Twenty five (25) of the fifty (50) required continuing education credits may be completed on line. Such proof shall be submitted within ten (10) days after it is requested by the Board.
Subsection 6807.1 is amended to read as follows:
6807.1 The Board may, in its discretion, approve continuing education program and activities that contribute to the growth of a licensee in professional
competence in the practice of podiatry which meet the other requirements of this section. In order to be approved by the Board, a
continuing education program or activity shall contribute directly to the professional competence of the licensee.
Subsection 6807.3 is amended to read as follows:
6807.3 To qualify for approval by the Board, a continuing education program shall:
(a) Be current in its professional subject matter;
(b) Be developed and taught by qualified individuals; and
(c) Meet one (1) of the following requirements:
(1) Be administered or pre-approved by the Council on
Podiatric Medical Education; or
(2) Be submitted by the program sponsor to the Board for
approval no fewer than sixty (60) days before the date of
presentation.
Subsections 6807.3.1 are 6807.3.2 are repealed.
Subsection 6807.4 is amended to read as follows:
6807.4 Pursuant to § 6807.3, a course agenda for a continuing education program shall be submitted by the licensee for approval by the Board no fewer than thirty (30) days before the date the course begins.
New subsections 6807.5, 6807.6, and 6807.7 are added to read as follows:
6807.5 The Board may issue an update to the list of approved continuing education
programs.
6807.6 An applicant shall have the burden of verifying whether a program is
approved by the Board pursuant to this section prior to attending the program.
6807.7 In accordance with § 6807.1, no credit shall be given for business, practice management, or internet technology seminars or courses.
New sections 6811 and 6812 are added to read as follows:
6811 CARDIOPULMONARY RESUSCITATION CERTIFICATION
REQUIREMENT
6811.1 For each licensure period beginning on or after April 1, 2012, an applicant for initial licensure or for renewal, reactivation, or reinstatement of a license shall be certified in cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by successfully completing an authorized course.
6811.2 An approved CPR certification or recertification course shall be eligible for a maximum of three (3) continuing education credit hours.
6811.3 Board-approved sponsors for CPR training include, but are not limited to:
(a) The American Red Cross;
(b) The American Heart Association;
(c) The American Safety and Health Institute; and
(d) Ursus Lifesavers and Aquatics.
6812 HEALTH CARE RECORDS
6812.1 A podiatrist shall maintain accurate, detailed, legible, and organized health
care records documenting all information collected pertaining to a patient’s health status.
6812.2 A podiatrist shall not erase, alter, or conceal information in a patient’s
health care records.
6812.3 A podiatrist shall initial and date any correction made to a patient’s
health care record in the corresponding margin and shall maintain the legibility of any information that has been corrected.
6812.4 A podiatrist shall release, within twenty-one (21) days after receipt of a request, a copy of a patient’s health care records when the request is
made by:
(a) The patient; or
(b) The legal representative or guardian of a patient or person authorized to have access to the patient’s record under a health
care power of attorney.
6812.5 A podiatrist may charge a reasonable copy fee per health care record and may refuse to provide a copy of the patient’s health care until payment has been made.
6812.6 Health care records shall be maintained for a minimum period of three (3)
years after the last contact by the podiatrist with an adult patient and a minimum period of three (3) years after a minor patient reaches the age of
majority.
6812.7 A podiatrist shall post information in his or her office to inform patients of the period for health care record retention.
6812.8 Patient health care records shall be destroyed in a manner that protects patient confidentiality, such as by incineration or shredding, and then only
after notice is provided to the last known address of the patient at least sixty (60) days before destruction.
6812.9 Patient health care records stored electronically shall have an established system of weekly back-up.
6812.10 When a podiatrist is closing, selling, or relocating his or her practice, he or she shall notify current and former patients whose health care records are being held by the podiatrist, at the patient’s last known address at least sixty (60) days before closing, selling, or relocating the practice. The podiatrist shall indicate how, where, and for how long patient health care
records may be retrieved after the office is closed, sold, or relocated.
Section 6899, subsection 6899.1 is amended by adding the following definition after the definition of the term “Board”:
Health care record – a document, except for a birth or death record, a record of admission to or discharge from a hospital or other health-care facility, or medical image, such as an x-ray, that pertain to the history, diagnosis, or health condition of a patient and is generated and maintained in the process of providing health-care treatment, regardless of whether the document, record of admission, or medical image originated with or was previously in the possession of another health-care provider.
