 | P: 573.636.4623
F: 573.636.9576
info@missourinurses.org
Missouri Nurses Association
P.O. Box 105228
1904 Bubba Lane
Jefferson City, MO
65110
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Provider Approval Description
Approval as a provider of continuing nursing education is granted by the Missouri Nurses Association (MONA), an ANCC Accredited Approver, in recognition of the provider's capacity to award contact hours for continuing nursing education activities, planned, implemented, and evaluated by the Approved Provider. An Approved Provider may be either a single-focused entity (individual, group, organization) devoted to offering continuing nursing education (CNE), or a distinct separately identified unit within a complex, multi-focused organization (such as a staff development department or division within a hospital or educational institution). In either case, the provider must be "administratively and operationally responsible for coordinating all aspects of the CNE activities provided by the organization." (ANCC, 2006, p. 26)
In order to be eligible for Provider approval, the Approved Provider must:
- Have been operational under ANCC COA/MONA Approved Provider criteria for a minimum of six months.
- Have planned, implemented and evaluated at least three educational activities that a) directly involve a designated Nurse Planner, and b) adheres to ANCC COA/MONA approved provider criteria.
- Have the services of at least one Nurse Planner who is responsible for adhering to ANCC COA/MONA Approved Provider criteria and is involved in the entire process of planning, implementing and evaluating each and every CNE activity provided by the organization. The Nurse Planner(s) may be staff members, consultants or volunteers.
- Ensure that the Nurse Planner is a registered nurse with a baccalaureate degree in nursing. If there is more than one Nurse Planner, all must meet this criterion.
Approval as an Approved Provider of continuing nursing education is based on an in-depth analysis of the provider's adherence to operational requirements, and the quality of three sample education activities to estimate the likelihood of a provider's ability to plan and provide quality continuing nursing education activities over a three-year period. In the 2006 revision of criteria, the emphasis throughout is on continuous quality improvement, and as part of Approved Provider evaluation, the provider is asked to identify goals for improvement, strategies for working on targeted goals, evaluate progress toward goals, and revise or establish new goals (ANCC, 2006, p.38). For each of the four Approved Provider Criterion (Goals and Organization, Educational Design, Unit Outcomes Evaluation and Unit Operations) the key elements and supporting evidence are listed, but the provider has considerable latitude in how they are demonstrated.
Approved Provider status allows the provider to offer an unlimited number of CNE activities and award contact hours for a three-year period. In order to obtain provider approval, the applicant must complete the provider application and meet the MONA criteria for approval. These criteria are based on the criteria established by the ANCC COA.
The following information will assist the applicant in meeting the criteria for approval as an Approved Provider:
- Obtain the correct guidelines, application, and evaluation criteria for the approval mode selected. This information is available from the MONA office as well as on the MONA website.
- Complete the application in full by including a narrative or direction to a supporting document for each criterion listed. Do not leave any criterion blank. Blank responses will not be accepted. The reviewers are evaluating the overall strength of the educational design of the activity. The review team can do this only with the information provided in the application.
- Respond to each criterion as thoroughly as possible. Do not simply repeat the criterion in an affirmative statement. Instead, explain how you are meeting the criterion. For example, instead of saying learning needs of RNs were assessed, you need to describe how these needs were assessed, what the results of the needs assessments were, and how these results influenced the planning committee's decision to design the program as it did.
- It is not necessary to submit information that is superfluous to the application i.e. presenter handouts. Unnecessary documentation only adds to copying costs and does little to strengthen the application or facilitate review.
- Try to limit the application to 50 pages for approved providers (pages can be double-sided).
- Document the expertise of planners, presenters, and resources. You may use the Biographical Data Form or another form that provides for documentation of the educational and experiential qualifications of planners, presenters and resources. The form used should accomplish this in a concise manner; lengthy full CV's are not encouraged, since they put the burden on the reviewer to try to locate relevant education and experience amid extraneous material. These forms should be completed in enough detail to communicate to the CE Approver Unit subcommittee why these individuals were selected to serve in the capacity stated. Please preface these forms with a list of the names of the planning committee and the faculty.
- Document any conflict of interest (financial relationship or other vested interest) of planners, presenters and resources. You may use the sample form provided in this manual or develop your own. Remember that all those in a position to influence content must complete the form; if they have no conflict of interest or vested interest, they declare that they do not, but the forms of planners, presenters and resources are part of a complete education activity application.
- Applications must be typed, in English and bound in secure manner, i.e. stapled, secured with a clip or placed in a binder or folder.
- Be sure all copies are clearly reproduced. Handwritten information and poorly reproduced copies are more difficult to read. The appearance and organization of the application will have an impact on the reviewer. A CNE application that appears "thrown together" gives a negative impression. Misspelled words, incorrect use of grammar, and incomplete sentences all portray a negative image of the provider of the CNE activity.
- Follow the order of the guidelines and criteria when preparing an application. When the information in the application does not correspond with the numbering, guidelines and criteria, the reviewers spend an incredible amount of time searching through the information trying to decide which criterion the information is addressing. This slows the review process and increases the chance of reviewer oversight of information.
- Sample forms have been created to assist you and are included at the end of the application materials. If these sample forms are used, please remove the "Sample" wording prior to submission.
- Be sure to collate the pages accurately. If appropriate, some information can be assembled in an appendix. The reader of the application should be referred to the appendix to review the material. In Approved Provider applications, divider tabs and appropriate pagination will help the reviewer in locating material.
- Be sure to send the correct number of copies of the application, as specified in the guidelines, and affix adequate postage when mailing your application. Applications with insufficient postage may be returned, thus delaying review of the application.
- Allow enough time to prepare your application so that it can be sent and postmarked by the established deadlines: for provider approval, by November 1 for the January to December cycle, or May 1 for the July to June cycle. Late applications will not be reviewed.
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