The goal of continuing education is to encourage the lifetime professional development of the licensed dentist, and to enhance the clinical and overall skills needed to protect the health and safety of all patients.

(1) A licensed dentist shall complete a minimum of sixty-three hours of continuing education every three years.

(a) The three-year continuing education reporting period for a dentist licensed in Washington before 2019 begins January 1, 2019, and verification of completion of continuing education hours will be due on the dentist's annual license renewal date in 2022, and every three years thereafter. The three-year continuing education reporting period for a dentist initially licensed in Washington in 2019 or later begins upon date of licensure.

(b) A licensed dentist shall attest to the completion of sixty-three hours of continuing education every three years as a part of their license renewal requirement.

(c) The dental quality assurance commission (commission) may randomly audit up to twenty-five percent of licensed dentists every three years for compliance after the license is renewed as allowed by chapter 246-12 WAC, Part 7.

(d) A licensed dentist shall comply with the requirements of chapter 246-12 WAC, Part 7.

(e) The commission will not authorize or approve specific continuing education courses.

(2) A licensed dentist shall complete the commission approved dental jurisprudence examination once every three years. One hour of continuing education will be granted toward the sixty-three hour requirement.

(3) Continuing education must contribute to the professional knowledge and development of the licensed dentist or enhance services provided to patients. Continuing education must be completed in one or more of the following subject categories:

(a) Education courses relating to the practice of dentistry;

(b) Emergency management, advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), and pediatric advanced life support (PALS);

(c) Health care provider basic life support (BLS). BLS certification is required in WAC 246-817-720. One hour of continuing education for each BLS certification course will be granted. A licensed dentist may not count more than three hours every three years in this category;

(d) Infection control, federal/state safety standards, and radiation protection;

(e) Pharmacology, prescribing practices, and pain management;

(f) Ethics;

(g) Patient care related education including risk management, methods of health delivery, multicultural, and suicide prevention education;

(h) Washington state dentistry law;

(i) Practice management and billing practices. A licensed dentist may not count more than twenty-one hours every three years in this category.

(4) Continuing education in subject categories identified in subsection (3) of this section may be completed using any of the following activities or methods:

(a) Attendance at local, state, national, or international continuing education courses, live interactive webinars, dental study clubs, postdoctoral education, and dental residencies;

(b) Self-study by various means, relevant to dentistry, without an instructor physically present.

(i) Self-study can be continuing education provided online or through the mail provided by a continuing education provider. Thirty minutes will count for every one hour completed for this activity;

(ii) Self-study can be reading a book that contributes to the professional knowledge and development of the licensed dentist, or enhance services provided to patients. A two-page synopsis of what was learned written by the licensed dentist is required. Two hours of continuing education for each book and synopsis will be granted. A licensed dentist may not count more than six hours every three years for this activity.

(c) Teaching, presenting, or lecturing in a course, only if the presentation or lecture is created or authored by the dentist claiming the continuing education hours. A licensed dentist may not count more than twenty-one hours every three years in this activity;

(d) Direct clinical supervision of dental students and dental residents. A licensed dentist may not count more than twenty-one hours every three years in this activity;

(e) Publishing a paper in a peer review journal. A licensed dentist may count fifteen hours the year the paper is published and may not count more than a total of thirty hours every three years in this activity. A copy of the publication is required;

(f) Reading and critically evaluating any hypothesis-driven scientific journal article on a topic that has relevance to dentistry and is published in a peer-reviewed journal devoted to dentistry, medicine, or useful to dentistry. A licensed dentist may not count more than twenty-one hours every three years.

(i) Before completing this activity, the licensed dentist must complete at least four hours of education in evidence-based dentistry or medicine that includes journal article evaluation. The four-hour education may count toward the required sixty-three hour requirement. The four-hour education is a one-time requirement. A licensed dentist may not count more than four hours every three years.

(ii) A licensed dentist may count one hour for each article that the dentist completes a "Critical Evaluation of a Journal Article" questionnaire. The questionnaire may be obtained from the commission. The completed questionnaire is required;

(g) Volunteer dental patient care. A licensed dentist may not count more than twenty-one hours every three years; and

(h) The commission will accept a current certification or recertification from any specialty board approved and recognized by the American Dental Association (ADA), the American Board of Dental Specialties (ABDS), or other specialty board certification or recertification approved by the commission as sixty-two hours of continuing education. The commission will also accept the award of Fellow of the Academy of General Dentistry, Master of the Academy of General Dentistry, or the Lifelong Learning and Service Recognition Award as sixty-two hours of continuing education. The certification, recertification, or award must be obtained in the three-year reporting period.

(5) Proof of continuing education is a certificate of completion, letter, or other documentation verifying or confirming attendance or completion of continuing education hours. Documentation must be from the organization that provided the activity, except in subsection (4)(b)(ii), (e), and (f)(ii) of this section, and must contain at least the following:

(a) Date of attendance or completion;

(b) Hours earned; and

(c) Course title or subject.