Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 30 - Professions and Occupations › Part 2901 - Mississippi State Board of Optometry Rules and Regulations › Chapter 4 - Continuing Education › Rule 30-2901-4.1 - General Requirements for all therapeutic optometrists

Current through June 25, 2024
(a) All
				therapeutically certified optometrists are required to obtain twenty (20) hours
				of continuing education (CE) each year for as long as they are in active
				practice. Ten (10) of these hours shall consist of therapeutic subject matter.
16 must be either, approved by the Counsel on Optometric
				  Practitioner Education (COPE), must be taken at a National, Regional, or State
				  Conference or at a school of optometry/teaching institution. The calendar year
				  is considered to begin January 1 and run through December 31.
(b) The board accepts for continuing
				education credit all courses sponsored by any board-accredited college or
				school of optometry and such other programs or courses of other organizations
				as are approved by the board. The board will consider, among other things in
				its discretion, the following criteria in approving courses:
(1) all subjects of education must be
				directly related to optometry;
(2)
				courses sponsored by or given by accredited optometry schools will be granted
				automatic approval;
(3) courses
				meeting evaluation standards and receiving approval of the Association of
				Regulatory Boards of Optometry (ARBO) will be granted automatic
				approval;
(4) courses sponsored by
				optometric organizations may be given approval;
(5) courses sponsored by universities or
				accredited non-optometric schools may be given approval if the subject matter
				is directly related to optometry;
(6) correspondence courses sponsored and
				graded by accredited optometry schools may be given approval, with a maximum of
				four hours of continuing education credit per calendar year per
				licensee;
(7) courses sponsored by
				individual providers may be approved but must supply the board with a synopsis
				of the lecture material to be presented, as well as resumes of the
				lecturers.
(8) The annual
				continuing education program of the Mississippi Optometric Association. A
				detailed summary of the annual continuing education program certified to by the
				Association's President shall be filed with the board prior to the meeting in
				which the course is offered.
(9)
				Other meetings or seminars either within or without the State of Mississippi
				that may be approved in advance by the board upon written request for approval
				made to the board at least thirty (30) days prior to the meeting or seminar. A
				copy of the program, names of speakers with qualifications, subject matter
				covered by each speaker and class hours to be offered by each, proof of
				attendance procedure and the proposed form of the signed attendance
				certificates procedure and the proposed form of the signed attendance
				certificates to be used; and the legal name, mailing and the street address and
				telephone number of the sponsor of such program shall be included as part of
				the written request and the request application must be signed by the sponsor
				or a duly authorized officer of the sponsor. The board, in approving may limit
				the credit hours allowed for any meeting, seminar, or subject under this
				item.
(10) In cases of extenuating
				circumstances, home study materials specified and approved by the board. Such
				will be allowed only upon submission of satisfactory evidence to the board of
				such circumstances and inability to otherwise acquire the required number of
				study hours. Credit hours to be allowed will be determined upon approval of
				such course of study.