Rule 700-7-.03 - Continuing Veterinary EducationThe Georgia State Board of Veterinary Medicine in accordance with the provisions of State Law and for the purpose of establishing certain minimum standards for continuing education in the best interest of and for the protection of the public health, safety and welfare hereby adopts the following rule:
(a) General Requirements: 1. Each veterinarian and veterinary faculty member licensed to practice in the State of Georgia must obtain thirty (30) hours of Board approved continuing education per biennium for license renewal. (i) Of the thirty (30) hours required, two (2) per renewal period must be acquired in Georgia laws, rules and professionalism, which may be acquired in person or by live, interactive webinars that include measures to ensure active participation throughout the course. Georgia licensees who do not practice in the State of Georgia are not required to meet the two (2) hour requirement in Georgia laws, rules and professionalism; and(ii) Eighteen (18) of the thirty (30) hours must include scientific subject matter. Scientific subject matter includes all conventional medical and surgical sub-categories that are evidence based in addition to the science of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disease as it relates directly to patients and includes a comprehensive range of the practice of veterinary medicine.2. At the time of license renewal, each veterinarian shall certify to the Georgia State Board of Veterinary Medicine that he/she has completed the continuing education required for license renewal.3. Veterinarians and veterinary faculty member licensed during the first year of a biennium must obtain fifteen (15) hours of continuing education and is not required to meet the two (2) hour requirement in Georgia laws, rules and professionalism. Veterinarians and veterinary faculty members licensed during the second year of a biennium is exempt from obtaining continuing education for that renewal period. After this time period, the entire thirty (30) hours is required for each renewal.4. In the event that a veterinarian or a veterinary faculty member fails to verify or submit documentation of continuing education credits at the same time of renewal of his/her license, the Board will not process his/her renewal until continuing education requirements have been met and proof of such has been received and approved by the Board.5. If documentation of continuing education is requested in conjunction with any audit and not received by the Board on or before the deadline date provided, the licensee will be subject to disciplinary action.6. A veterinarian or veterinary faculty member may not carry over continuing education credits from one biennium license renewal period to the next.7. Each veterinarian or veterinary faculty member must maintain a record of credit hours earned and proof of attendance of such hours for a period of three years from the date of the preceding renewal period and must provide the Board with said documentation upon request.8. Veterinarians or veterinary faculty members who attend programs where more than one course is taught must maintain proof of the courses attended and the number of hours awarded for each course.(b) Approved Continuing Education Programs and Hours:1. Blanket approval is awarded to any National, State and International veterinary association meetings, United States Department of Agriculture and Georgia Department of Agriculture sponsored meeting, Board Certified Specialties programs recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association, all AVMA accredited veterinary college or school sponsored classes and programs, all AAVSB RACE approved programs, any GVMA constituent organization programs, AAHA programs, programs sponsored by the United States or Southern Animal Health Association and any course approved by another state board.2. Blanket approval does not apply to any continuing education programs on Georgia laws, rules and professionalism (LEAP). All LEAP courses and any other (non-LEAP) continuing education course which is not offered by a blanket approved organization must be awarded Board approval before the course is offered.3. Providers may be awarded Board approval for a continuing education course by submitting the following for consideration by the Board:(i) A continuing education application form;(ii) A detailed course outline or syllabus;(iii) A current curriculum vitae or resume must be provided for each speaker or lecturer;(iv) The procedure to be used for recording attendance; and,(v) The number of continuing education hours for which the course sponsor requests approval.4. In addition to the LEAP requirements, the remaining credit hours may be earned as follows: (i) One (1) hour may be given for each 50 minutes of contact time. Seminars are composed of lectures or labs; welcoming remarks, business sessions, unstructured demonstrations or degree programs are not considered seminars.(ii) Three (3) hours can be for journal studies where follow-up testing is required. Fifteen (15) hours of interactive computer generated courses will be allowed. Follow-up testing is required.(iii) A maximum of twelve (12) hours will be allowed per calendar day.(iv) A maximum of six (6) hours for veterinarians can be acquired through in house training at the licensees' place of employment.(v) A maximum of ten (10) hours can be acquired through in house training for veterinary faculty at AVMA accredited institutions. For the purposes of this rule, "in house training" refers to programs that are only offered to employees of the institution.(vi) A maximum of three (3) hours can be acquired by licensees who conducted peer reviews for the Board.(vii) Two (2) hours of continuing education credit per lecture for a subject area, regardless of the number of times the licensee presents the course, for a maximum of five different subjects.(c) Continuing Education Audit:1. During the renewal period, the Board staff will randomly select a percentage of its licensees to audit for continuing education compliance.2. If selected for continuing education audit, each licensee must submit continuing education records to meet the renewal requirements for that license renewal period.(d) Provider and Sponsor Criteria: All providers and sponsors must provide the following information to the Board if they have not been awarded blanket approval: 1. Each sponsor or provider shall have an administrator whose responsibility is to maintain the criteria for quality in programming.2. Providers shall use qualified personnel to develop and present the programs, which shall utilize appropriate instructional materials and resources.3. Providers shall provide to the Board adequate advanced promotional information, material about target audiences, program content, faculty credentials and fees.4. Providers shall provide a means of registration of the participants at each program and maintain a record of attendance for a period of three years from the date of the program.5. Providers shall develop policies and procedures for the management of grievances.6. Providers shall provide each participant with adequate documentation of his/her successful completion of the program. The documentation shall include:(i) Name and license number of participant;(iii) Name and title of program to include the date and time each individual course was offered;(iv) Hours/CEU's completed;(v) Date of completion; and(vi) Authorizing signature.7. All continuing education providers seeking approval of the continuing education program by the Georgia State Board of Veterinary shall submit a current Program Approval Form for each program presented to include all program materials requested. These forms must be complete and should be submitted 60 days in advance in order to be considered by the Board.Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 700-7-.03
O.C.G.A. §§ 43-1-25, 43-50-21, 43-50-40, 43-50-52; 43-50-110.
Original Rule entitled "Continuing Veterinary Education" was filed November 4, 1988: effective November 24, 1988.Amended: F. Dec. 19, 1990: eff. Jan. 8, 1991.Amended: F. Jun. 20, 1997; eff. July 10, 1997.Repealed: New Rule of same title adopted. F. Apr. 8, 2002; eff. Apr. 28, 2002.Repealed: New Rule of same title adopted. F. Feb. 6, 2005; eff. Feb. 26, 2005.Amended: F. Aug. 24, 2007; eff. Sept. 13, 2007.Amended: F. Sept. 2, 2008; eff. Sept. 22, 2008.Repealed: New Rule of the same title adopted. F. Aug. 12, 2010; eff. Sept. 1, 2010.Repealed: New Rule of the same title adopted. F. Jun. 19, 2012; eff. July 9, 2012.Amended: F. Nov. 5, 2014; eff. Nov. 25, 2014.Amended: F. May 26, 2017; eff. June 15, 2017.Amended: F. Mar. 16, 2018; eff. Apr. 5, 2018.Amended: F. Mar. 24, 2021; eff. Apr. 13, 2021.