Continuing Education
A licensee who is actively engaged in the practice of optometry shall
earn a minimum of twenty hours of continuing education each registration period.
The subject matter for continuing education shall reflect the professional needs
of the licensee in order to meet the health care needs of the public, and shall
include:
Not less than ten hours shall be earned through direct, live instruction that the licensee physically attends; not more than ten hours shall be earned through synchronous online education with opportunities for live interaction; not more than five hours shall be earned through asynchronous online education, distance learning or home study; and (D) not more than six hours shall be in practice management. For the purposes of this subdivision, “synchronous online education” means live online classes that are conducted in real time and “asynchronous online education” means a program where the instructor, learner and other participants are not engaged in the learning process at the same time, there is no real-time interaction between participants and instructors and the educational content is created and made available for later consumption.
Qualifying Continuing Education
Qualifying continuing education activities include, but are not limited to, courses offered or approved by the Council on Optometric Practitioner Education of the Association of Regulatory Boards of Optometry, the American Optometric Association or state or local optometry associations and societies that are affiliated with the American Optometric Association, a hospital or other health care institution, a school or college of optometry or other institution of higher education accredited or recognized by the Council on Optometric Practitioner Education or the American Optometric Association, a state or local health department, or a national, state or local medical association.
The Department does not approve continuing education courses, pre-approve
specific coursework for individual licensees or maintain a list of continuing
education courses.
Each licensee applying for
license renewal, except a licensee applying for a
license renewal for the first time, shall attest that he or
she has satisfied the continuing education requirements on the annual renewal application.
Record Retention
Each licensee shall retain records of attendance or certificates of completion
that demonstrate compliance with the continuing education requirements for not less than three years following the
date on which the continuing education was completed or the license was renewed.
Each licensee shall submit such records to the department for inspection not
later than forty-five days after a request by the department for such records. A
licensee who fails to comply with the CE provisions may be
subject to disciplinary action.
Exemptions/Waivers
In individual cases
involving medical disability or illness, the department may
grant a waiver of the continuing education requirements or an extension of time
within which to fulfill the requirements of this section to any licensee,
provided the licensee submits to the department an application for waiver or
extension of time along with a
certification by a licensed physician of the disability or illness and such
other documentation as may be required. The department may
grant a waiver or extension for a period not to exceed one registration period,
except that the department may grant additional waivers or extensions if the
medical disability or illness upon which a waiver or extension is granted
continues beyond the period of the waiver or extension and the licensee applies
for an additional waiver or extension.
A licensee who is not
actively engaged in the practice of optometry, in any form, during a
registration period shall be exempt from the continuing education requirements,
provided the licensee submits a notarized application for exemption before the end of the registration period. A
licensee who is exempt under the provisions of this subsection may not engage in
the practice of optometry until the licensee has met the continuing education
requirements of this section.
Reinstatement of a Lapsed License
A licensee whose license has become void pursuant to section 19a-88 and who applies to the department for reinstatement of such license shall submit evidence of successful completion of twenty contact hours of continuing education within the one-year period immediately preceding the application for reinstatement.