The Florida Senate

467.012  Renewal of license.--

(1)  The department shall renew a license upon receipt of the renewal application and fee, provided the applicant is in compliance with the provisions of this chapter and rules adopted under this chapter.

(2)  The department shall adopt rules establishing a procedure for the biennial renewal of licenses.

(3)  The department may by rule prescribe continuing education requirements, not to exceed 20 hours biennially, as a condition for renewal of a license. The criteria for continuing education programs shall be approved by the department. Any individual, institution, organization, or agency that is approved by the department to provide continuing education programs to midwives for the purpose of license renewal must demonstrate that such programs comply with the following criteria:

(a)  The programs have clinical relevance to the practice of midwifery;

(b)  The programs are at least 1 clock hour in duration;

(c)  The programs have an organized structure with objectives and expected outcomes; and

(d)  Each presenter, instructor, or facilitator of programs is a recognized professional, such as a physician, nurse, certified nurse midwife, psychologist, or licensed midwife.

(4)  The department shall approve, through the adoption of rules, continuing education programs that meet the criteria of this section and have clinical relevance to the practice of midwifery. Each midwife shall be required to affirm that he or she has the applicable number of continuing education hours for the reporting period as specified by the department.

(5)  A midwife licensed in this state who resides in another state may obtain the continuing education credits required for license renewal by attending a program approved by the agency in the midwife's state of residence which regulates the licensure of health care professionals in that state if such program has clinical relevance to the practice of midwifery.

(6)  A licensed midwife may fulfill up to 5 hours of continuing education credit by providing pro bono services for indigent persons or underserved populations in areas of critical need within the state.

(7)  In order to authorize continuing education credit for pro bono services, the department shall adopt rules requiring that a licensee notify the department of his or her intention of providing these services; the type, nature, and extent of services to be rendered; the location where the services will be rendered; the number of patients expected to be served; and a statement indicating that the patients to be served are indigent.

(8)  Each midwife shall maintain documentation of pro bono service for 4 years after the date the credits are used as a basis for license renewal and shall submit a certified copy of such documentation to the department upon request.

(9)  The department shall audit the files of randomly selected licensees to ensure compliance with this section and with rules adopted under this section. The department may take disciplinary action, as established by rule, against a licensee who fails to maintain the required documentation for continuing education, patient records, and pro bono service or who submits false or misleading information or documentation to the department.

(10)  Any individual, institution, organization, or agency that seeks approval by the department for the purpose of conducting continuing education programs for licensed midwives must apply to the department. The department shall issue a provider number to all approved providers, which number must appear on all documents that relate to each continuing education program conducted by the provider. A provider's approved status remains in effect for the biennium in which such status was granted by the department. The department may renew a provider's approved status if the provider meets the requirements established by the department by rule. An approved provider shall maintain the following records for each continuing education program for 4 years following the licensure biennium during which the program was offered:

(a)  A program outline that reflects the educational objectives of the program;

(b)  The instructor's name;

(c)  The date and location of the program;

(d)  The participants' evaluations of the program;

(e)  The number of clock hours of credit awarded to each participant; and

(f)  A roster of participants by name and license number.

(11)  The approved provider of a continuing education program shall certify the participation of any midwife who completes the program by providing the midwife with a certificate or comparable documentation verifying that the midwife completed the program. The department shall adopt rules that establish what the verification must contain.

(12)  A presenter of a continuing education program may receive the same amount of credit, on a one-time basis, as the program participants. The presenter must have developed the program, been in attendance for the entire program, and received documentation of completion from the approved provider. A licensee may receive up to 3 hours of continuing education credit per biennium for presenting programs.

(13)  The department may audit or monitor programs and review records and program materials given by any approved provider. The department may rescind a provider's approved status or reject an individual program given by a provider if the program does not have clinical relevance to the practice of midwifery, if any false or misleading information is disseminated in connection with the continuing education program, or if the provider fails to conform to and abide by the conditions outlined in the application and rules of the department.

History.--ss. 1, 3, ch. 82-99; s. 88, ch. 83-218; s. 8, ch. 84-268; ss. 4, 5, ch. 91-429; s. 19, ch. 92-179; s. 182, ch. 94-119; s. 5, ch. 98-130.