(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Montana considers eliminating continuing education for registered nurses – Daily Montanan [1] ['Darrell Ehrlick', 'More From Author', '- July'] Date: 2023-07-31 A new administrative rule proposal by the Gianforte administration would would repeal all continuing education requirements for registered nurses in Montana, a move the state’s largest nursing organization opposes. On June 29, the Montana Board of Nursing sent the notice of the proposed rule which said that all licensed registered nurses and advance practice registered nurses would no longer be required to have continuing education as part of the state requirements. Montana Department of Labor spokeswoman Jessica Nelson told the Daily Montanan that the state Board of Nursing voted to approve the change unanimously, and she said the nurses were following the state board of medical examiners, which licenses physicians. Nelson said there are no continuing education requirements for doctors to be licensed in Montana. Instead, she said that often professional organizations, medical fraternities and medical practices set out their own continuing education requirements so the state requirement may be redundant. “The board’s goal in eliminating the continuing education requirement is to reduce the administrative burden on nurses so they can focus on the skills they need to deliver quality health care,” Nelson said. “The board requires a nurse who holds a license in Montana to ‘exercise technical competence’ in their practice as part of the professional conduct rule that governs a nurse’s license — that is not changing. As nursing professionals, licensees will continue to be responsible for ensuring they are competent in the skills and care they provide our Montana citizens.” It’s not the first time the state has raised the hackles by changing rules related to professional licensure. For example, last year, both architects and the accounting industry were displeased by a number of changes the Gianforte administration attempted as part of its “red-tape reduction” initiative, a group of plans that touted fewer requirements in order to aid the business community. However, in those cases, leaders from both respective fields say the lack of standards jeopardized public trust and risked making Montana an outlier when it came to other states and transferring professional licensure. Vicky Byrd, the chief executive officer of the Montana Nurses Association told the Daily Montanan, it’s not clear who asked for the change, and she said it’s an idea that neither the nurses association nor patients support. Montana is currently one of 42 states that specifically requires the ongoing or continuing education. Byrd attended two meetings where the idea was floated, and she described the public comment as almost – if not exclusively – supportive of keeping continuing education requirements, which mandate that nurses have continued training in a number of different areas. Currently, the board doesn’t audit every nurse, Byrd said – instead, it’s a review of random nurses who are checked for compliance. Byrd has been a nurse for nearly 40 years and she specialized as a pediatric caregiver. “Every day, the evidence and data changes,” she said. There are as many as 20,000 nurses in Montana, and Byrd said that while not every single one of them may love the idea of continuing education, she said she searched to find the group or people who opposed nurses getting regular, ongoing education. “Apparently, the administration has identified stakeholders who do not agree, but they won’t name them,” Byrd said. The Daily Montanan reached out to the Department of Labor which has oversight on the Board of Nursing and asked what groups support the idea of dropping the requirement. It also asked about opposition. The department provided no further information about the opponents than what had been voiced at meetings, and did not provide any names of people who opposed the education requirement. “Well who is it? Who is driving this change so that we can have a conversation?” Byrd said. Byrd said a large portion of and value of their organization is bringing experts and leaders to nurses in Montana so that they can be trained. The MNA helps offer continuing education courses throughout the state, as well as accredits them. “You’re absolutely crippling our ability to do business in the state of Montana,” Byrd said. Also, she said that healthcare will likely suffer if this rule is implemented. For example, if she were to practice nursing in the same she did when she got out of school – without any continuing education – she’d be putting patients at risk. “The treatment protocol for illnesses or conditions changes weekly. That’s why we offer education and training,” she said. When she started, there were no computers to help chart, and nurses carried pens with three colors of ink – green for the day shift, red for the night shift and black for the evening shift. “Even that takes training,” Byrd said. Byrd pointed out that pharmacists, respiratory care providers, real estate agents and barbers all have requirements for training. “All nurses have firsthand knowledge of the rapid advancements in healthcare and the need for ongoing learning to provide safe and effective care,” Byrd said. “MNA is concerned for our Montana communities and believes these proposed changes directly impact public safety.” [END] --- [1] Url: https://dailymontanan.com/2023/07/31/montana-considers-eliminating-continuing-education-for-registered-nurses/ Published and (C) by Daily Montanan Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/montanan/