Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 645 - Professional Licensure Division › Psychologists › Chapter 244 - Prescribing Psychologists › Rule 645-244.3 - Educational Requirements for Conditional Prescription Certificate-joint Rule

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
An applicant for a conditional prescription certificate shall
				  have completed a program of study designated by the APA as a program for the
				  psychopharmacology training of postdoctoral psychologists. The program must
				  have included didactic instruction, a clinical experience, and a practicum
				  satisfying the requirements of this rule. A minimum of 40 hours of basic
				  training on clinical assessment skills shall be included as part of the
				  program's didactic instruction.
(1)
Degree.
An applicant shall possess a postdoctoral master of
				science degree in clinical psychopharmacology from a program designated by the
				APA as a program for the psychopharmacology training of postdoctoral
				psychologists. The degree program must be a minimum of 30 credit hours not
				including the practicum and shall include coursework in basic science,
				neuroscience, clinical medicine, pathological basis of disease, clinical
				pharmacology, psychopharmacology, and professional, ethical and legal issues. A
				minimum of one-third of the coursework must be completed in a live interactive
				format. The date the degree is conferred must be within the five-year period
				immediately preceding the application for a conditional prescription
				certificate. A program must be designated by the APA at the time the degree is
				conferred.
(2)
Clinical
				experience.
An applicant shall have completed a clinical experience in
				accordance with the requirements of this subrule. During the clinical
				experience, a psychologist shall learn clinical assessment techniques and
				pathophysiology through direct observation and hands-on training with a
				training physician. During the clinical experience, a psychologist shall become
				competent in health history interviews, physical examinations, and neurological
				examinations with a medically diverse patient population. The clinical
				experience must be associated with the psychopharmacology training program from
				which the psychologist obtained the postdoctoral master of science degree in
				clinical psychopharmacology.
a.
Scope.
At the beginning of the clinical experience, the psychologist
				shall directly observe the training physician performing clinical assessments
				of patients. After the training physician determines the psychologist has
				gained sufficient knowledge, the clinical experience shall transition to the
				psychologist's performance of clinical assessments of patients under the direct
				observation of the training physician. After the training physician determines
				the psychologist has gained sufficient knowledge and experience, the
				psychologist may perform clinical assessments of patients without being
				directly observed by the training physician, provided that the training
				physician is on site at all times when the psychologist is with patients and is
				reviewing all medical records. A psychologist and a training physician shall
				have ongoing discussions regarding the psychologist's clinical assessment
				skills and progress in the clinical experience.
b.
Minimum experience.
The
				clinical experience shall consist of a minimum of 600 patient encounters that
				shall be completed by the end of the practicum.
c.
Conflict of interest.
A
				training physician shall not be an employee of the psychologist or otherwise
				have a conflict of interest that could affect the training physician's ability
				to impartially evaluate the psychologist's performance. A psychologist may
				utilize more than one training physician.
d.
Milestones.
To
				satisfactorily complete the clinical experience, a psychologist shall
				demonstrate competency in each of the following:
(1) Perform a health history interview to
				obtain pertinent information regarding a patient's chief complaint, history of
				the present illness, past medical and surgical history, family history,
				allergies, medications, and psychosocial history. The psychologist shall
				perform a review of systems to elicit a health history and shall appropriately
				document the health history.
(2)
				Perform a physical examination in a logical sequence, ensuring appropriate
				positioning of the patient, proper patient draping, and proper application of
				the principles of asepsis throughout the examination. The psychologist shall
				verbalize and assess the components of a general survey and be able to
				accurately assess all of the following: vital signs, including pulse,
				respiration, and blood pressure; skin, hair and nails; head, face and neck;
				eyes; ears, nose, mouth and throat; thorax, lungs and axillae; heart;
				peripheral vascular system; abdomen; and musculoskeletal system. The
				psychologist shall be proficient in utilizing any equipment needed to conduct a
				physical examination.
(3) Complete
				a neurological examination demonstrating knowledge of the history related to
				the neurological system and the ability to assess the following: mental status,
				cranial nerves, motor system, sensory system, and reflexes. The psychologist
				shall differentiate normal laboratory values from abnormal laboratory values
				and correlate abnormal laboratory values with impaired physiological systems.
				The psychologist shall identify adverse drug reactions and identify laboratory
				data and physical signs indicating an adverse drug reaction.
e.
Informed
				consent.
At the initial contact, the psychologist shall inform the
				patient, or the patient's legal guardian when appropriate, of the
				psychologist's training role in the clinical experience. The psychologist shall
				provide sufficient information regarding the expectations and requirements of
				the clinical experience to obtain informed consent and appropriate releases.
				Upon request, the psychologist shall provide additional information regarding
				the psychologist's education, training, or experience.
f.
Training documentation.
The psychologist and the training director shall maintain documentation
				accounting for all clinical experience patient encounters, including the dates,
				times, and locations of all clinical experience patient encounters, and
				documentation of completion of the milestones defined in these rules. The
				applicant shall provide additional documentation to the board upon
				request.
g.
Certification.
The training physician(s) and the training director
				shall certify on forms provided by the board that the applicant has
				successfully completed the minimum number of clinical experience patient
				encounters required and demonstrated competence in clinical assessment
				techniques and pathophysiology through completion of the milestones defined in
				these rules.