CE Credits for Pharmacists
The Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), the national agency responsible for accreditation of professional degree programs, defines continuing education as “a structured process of education designed to support the continuous development of pharmacists to maintain and enhance their professional competence. Pharmacists continuing education should be able to promote critical thinking and be applicable to the practice of pharmacy.
To guide pharmacists in choosing and obtaining ce credits, the Pharmacists’ Learning Assistance Network (P.L.A.N.) was developed by the ACPE. P.L.A.N. is a computerized compilation of different ce courses available for professionals within the pharmacy industry. This system also provides a list of free courses hosted by pharmaceutical companies and a database of available courses with its corresponding ce credit.
The requirements for continuing education differ by state. While most states allow online education and examinations, other state require pharmacists to attend on-site seminars where continuing education credits should be obtained in a preset seminar date and time. For states that allow professionals to get their ce credit for pharmacy online, people are given wider program options, including university-based courses, free pharmaceutical company-sponsored courses and programs with charge.
The number of credits required also varies by state. For instance, all professional pharmacists in Texas need to complete 30 hours of CE in order to continue practicing. Since a pharmacist should complete the required credits before his license expires, the extra hours obtained cannot be carried onto the next license period. When applying for license renewal, a pharmacist should state that the specified number of CE hours required has been completed.
For pharmacists with inactive licenses, reporting of CE hours during renewal is not necessary. Those who have recently received their pharmacy licenses doesn’t need to report their continuing education credits during the first renewal period. However, all CE requirements mandatory for each state should complement the hours needed for license renewal.
Once you’ve completed the necessary hours, keep your certificates of completion you received from reputable pharmacy continuing education programs until three years from the date of CE reporting. However, the board does not require you to send the CE certifications unless asked to. Pharmacists unable to produce their respective records within a given period or any professional pharmacists who have produced false records when audited would face appropriate disciplinary action.