WSR 99-01-098
PERMANENT RULES
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
(Nursing Care Quality Assurance Commission)
[Filed December 17, 1998, 10:04 a.m.]
Date of Adoption: October 30, 1998.
Purpose: Amend WAC 246-840-030 to incorporate the language from WAC 246-838-040. When this incorporation is done, the old WAC 246-838-040 will be repealed so that all nursing rules will now have numbers 246-840 only. This amendment does not change any wording nor any requirements, simply the numbering of the rule language.
Citation of Existing Rules Affected by this Order: Amending WAC 246-840-030 Examination and licensure.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 18.79 RCW.
Adopted under notice filed as WSR 98-18-072 on August 31, 1998.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Comply with Federal Statute: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; Federal Rules or Standards: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; or Recently Enacted State Statutes: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted at Request of a Nongovernmental Entity: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted on the Agency's Own Initiative: New 0, amended 1, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted in Order to Clarify, Streamline, or Reform Agency Procedures: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0.
Number of Sections Adopted Using Negotiated Rule Making: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; Pilot Rule Making: New 0, amended 0, repealed 0; or Other Alternative Rule Making: New 0, amended 1, repealed 0.
Effective Date of Rule: Thirty-one days after filing.
November 2, 1998
Paula R. Meyer
Executive Director
OTS-1821.3
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 97-17-015, filed 8/8/97, effective 9/8/97)
WAC 246-840-030 Examination and licensure. (1) Graduates from Washington state board approved schools of nursing holding a degree/diploma from such a school shall be eligible to write the examination provided all other requirements are met.
(2) Graduates from a nursing school approved by a board of nursing in another U.S. jurisdiction shall be eligible to take the examination provided that:
(a) The nursing school meets the minimum standards approved for state board school of nursing in Washington at the time of the applicant's graduation;
(b) Graduate has completed all institutional requirements for the degree/diploma in nursing education per attestation from the administrator of the approved nursing education program;
(c) All other requirements of the statute and regulations shall be met.
(3) Graduates of a nontraditional school of nursing which meet the requirements of subsection (2)(a), (b) and (c) of this section, are eligible to take the registered nurse examination provided that the following conditions are met: (For purposes of this section, nontraditional schools of nursing are defined as schools that have curricula which do not include a faculty supervised teaching/learning component in clinical settings.)
(a) The candidate is a licensed practical nurse in Washington state; and
(b) There is documentation of at least two hundred hours of supervised clinical experience (preceptorship) in the role of a registered nurse. The required elements of a preceptorship are as follows:
(i) Acceptable clinical sites - Acceptable clinical sites include acute care or subacute care settings or skilled nursing facilities. Other sites must be approved by the commission.
(ii) Qualifications of preceptor (instructor) - The preceptor must be a licensed registered nurse in Washington state with at least two years experience in a practice setting and have no history of disciplinary actions. The candidate must provide documentation that the preceptor meets these requirements when he/she applies for licensure and must also provide a written agreement between the candidate and the preceptor (or facility) that preceptorship supervision will occur.
(iii) Experiences in the preceptorship - Experiences must include delegation and supervision, decision making and critical thinking, patient assessment as part of the nursing process and evaluation of care. A checklist, provided by the commission, must be completed by the preceptor which indicates the candidate's satisfactory completion of the identified skills. This checklist must be submitted with the candidate's application for licensure; and
(c) The candidate receives a satisfactory evaluation from their preceptor meeting commission requirements as previously identified ((b)(iii) of this subsection); and
(d) All other requirements of the nursing statute and regulations are met.
(4) In order to be eligible for licensure by examination the applicant shall have satisfactorily completed an approved practical nursing program, fulfilling all the basic course content as stated in WAC 246-840-575, or its equivalent as determined by the board. Every applicant must have satisfactorily completed an approved practical nursing program within two years of the date of the first examination taken or the applicant must meet other requirements of the board to determine current theoretical and clinical knowledge of practical nursing practice.
(5) An applicant who has not completed an approved practical nurse program must establish evidence of successful completion of nursing and related courses at an approved school preparing persons for licensure as registered nurses, which courses include personal and vocational relationships of the practical nurse, basic science and psychosocial concepts, theory and clinical practice in medications and the nursing process, and theory and clinical practice in medical, surgical, geriatric, pediatric, obstetric and mental health nursing. These courses must be equivalent to those same courses in a practical nursing program approved by the board.
(6) A notice of eligibility for admission to the licensing examination may be issued to all new graduates from board approved practical nursing programs after the filing of a completed application, payment of the application fee, and official notification from the program certifying that the individual has satisfactorily completed all requirements for the diploma/certification.
(7) All other requirements of the statute and regulations shall be met.
[Statutory Authority: RCW 18.79.160. 97-17-015, § 246-840-030, filed 8/8/97, effective 9/8/97.]