Continuing education (CE) is a key feature of “continuing competency requirements” for nurses throughout Georgia, from Atlanta to Athens, Columbus to Cartersville. Failing to meet the required education hours can result in your renewal application being denied. Lying about your completion of continuing education hours, on the other hand, can lead to far more severe professional consequences.
The Georgia Board of Nursing may “waive or modify continuing education requirements “in cases of hardship, disability, or illness. However, the Board is unlikely to show such leniency if it believes a nurse acted unethically with respect to their continuing education requirements.
If you or a loved one is being actively audited, has been accused of professional misconduct, made a mistake related to your CE that you want to address proactively, or simply has questions about continuing education (or professional misconduct) in Georgia, we are here to help.
Call the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss your concerns related to continuing nursing education in Georgia.
How Continuing Education Can Become a Dire Problem for Nurses in Georgia
Georgia law (and the Board of Nursing that enforces it) is actually more flexible than most in its requirements for nurses seeking to renew their licenses. A Registered Nurse has the option to check off one of the following steps, after which they have completed their “continuing competency requirement”:
- Complete 30 hours of Board-approved continuing education
- Obtain certification or recertification by a “national certifying body”
- Completed an accredited academic nursing program (typically for recent graduates who are seeking their initial nursing license)
- Complete 500 hours of employment with certification from an employer
- Complete “Other activities as prescribed and approved by the board that show competency in the nursing field”
*Requirements for Licensed Practical Nurses (LPNs) in Georgia are slightly different.
Many nurses look at this list and decide that 30 hours of continuing education is a straightforward, measurable, attainable goal. However, a nurse may run into a serious professional problem if they:
- Do not keep documentation of their completed CE hours—Georgia law requires them to keep this paperwork up to four years after renewal, in part because of a possible audit
- Take unaccredited coursework (only to realize their hours are invalid before they have time to rectify the shortfall by taking ANCC-accredited courses)
- Lose track of the number of hours they must complete, their progress in completing those hours, their license renewal deadline, or other crucial considerations
More serious professional problems tend to arise when, rather than taking a CE shortcoming on the chin, a nurse suffers a lapse in judgment. They might make a false statement about completing CE hours, for instance, and could be accused of fraud or deceit in obtaining a license.
Even though Georgia uses the CE Broker database as a tracking tool, it’s not a total prophylactic—nurses can still be accused of deception, fabrication, and other offenses that expose them to severe discipline.
The CE Broker Audit: Is This Where CE-Related Professional Misconduct Comes to Light?
Yes, the Georgia Board of Nursing can uncover evidence of possible misconduct during an audit of a nurse’s CE Broker account. Both the nurse and the Board of Nursing might use CE Broker to:
- Track a nurse’s completion of CE hours
- Monitor progress towards the completion of renewal requirements
- Identify deficits in CE work that must be remediated
Remember that a nurse, when renewing their license in Georgia, may first attest that they have completed the required amount of CE coursework. Georgia statutes use the word “if,” not “when,” in stating that “Licensees shall…produce documentation of the completion of the continuing competency activities for renewal…if audited during the renewal process.”
If a nurse is audited during the renewal process and the Board finds a discrepancy between the CE coursework the nurse attested to and the coursework logged in CE Broker, that discrepancy could prompt a misconduct investigation.
Do I Face Stiffer Sanctions If Accused of Professional Misconduct (Rather Than Just Failing to Complete My CE Hours)?
Yes, you are likely to face more severe professional discipline if you are accused of fraudulent, deceptive, or otherwise unprofessional conduct related to your completion (or reporting) of CE hours.
Georgia statutes state that, if your CE Broker account is audited, a deficit is found, and you can’t provide documentation to remediate the deficit, then:
- Your renewal application will likely be denied
- If your license was renewed based on the understanding that you had completed necessary CE hours, the license could be suspended or revoked
These actions can disrupt your career in a major way. However, such actions may be lifted if a nurse completes the required CE hours—as stated, the Georgia Board of Nursing has broad discretion to define the terms and conditions of a nurse’s license renewal.
Conversely, if you are found to have intentionally engaged in misconduct specific to your reporting of CE hours, you may be more likely to:
- Be dealt with harshly by the Georgia Board of Nursing
- Face a severe, long-term sanction such as license suspension or revocation
- Suffer professional reputational harm that affects your opportunities and earning power indefinitely
The details of nurse discipline may not just be public record in Georgia, but throughout the United States.
Will Any Discipline Be Reported to the Nursys Database?
Because the Georgia Board of Nursing participates in the nationwide Nursys database, the consequences of professional discipline in Georgia become a nationwide concern immediately.
Should you be sanctioned based on the result of a CE Broker audit (or other circumstances related to continuing competency requirements), you can be fairly certain that:
- Your current employer will find out about it, perhaps because they have signed up for automated alerts through Nursys e-Notify
- Any licensing authorities and prospective employers who are considering your candidacy will see the record of discipline
- The disciplinary decision will truly become a matter of public, nationwide record—rather than a locally contained problem
In other words, the Nursys database raises the stakes of any CE Broker audit or Georgia Board of Nursing investigation you are facing.
I’m Concerned About Being Disciplined. What’s a Sound Professional Defense Strategy?
We encourage you to contact our Professional License Defense Team right away for a personalized strategy. Your next steps and your defensive strategy must reflect:
- Whether you made a mistake and need to seek a merciful resolution
- Any circumstances that were unintentional or outside of your control, such as you taking an unaccredited course or a technological glitch within CE Broker
- Your record of ethical behavior as a nurse
- Any right you have to appeal adverse decisions by the Georgia Board of Nursing, whether that is an unjustified denial of your license renewal application or discipline based on alleged professional misconduct
If you made a mistake, the details matter. Our Professional License Defense Team tells nurses’ stories with the necessary context and empathy. Whether you want to fight any attempt to discipline you or are willing to negotiate a disciplinary agreement, we are the team to represent you.
Call the LLF National Law Firm Professional License Defense Team today at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss how continuing education requirements are threatening (or could threaten) your ability to practice nursing in Georgia.