What do I need to know about continuing education (CE)? – PTCB (Pharmacy Technician Certification Board)

CE ACTIVITY SUBJECT MATTER

All continuing education (CE) activities completed for CPhT renewal must contain subject matter listed within the Pharmacy Technician Certification Examination (PTCE) Content Outline.

REQUIRED CE HOURS

Within each recertification cycle, PTCB requires the completion of 20 CE hours, including 1 hour in the subject of pharmacy law and 1 hour in the subject of patient safety.*
When applying for reinstatement, PTCB requires the completion of 20 CE hours, including 2 hours in the subject of pharmacy law and 1 hour in the subject of patient safety, completed within the last recertification cycle and up until the date the reinstatement application is submitted.*

*For applications submitted on or after September 1, 2020, PTCB accepts a minimum of 15 T-specific CE hours and a maximum of 5 P-specific hours from ACPE-accredited providers. At least one (1) hour of CE activity must have the ‘03’ ACPE topic designator for pharmacy law, and at least one (1) hour of CE activity must have the ‘05’ ACPE topic designator for patient safety. CE activities from non-ACPE-accredited providers will be accepted if PTCB determines that the activity contains subject matter listed within the PTCE Content Outline.

CE ACTIVITY TYPES

Credit may be earned by attending seminars, workshops, conferences, or other educational programs that primarily contain subject matter contained within the PTCE Content Outline. These activities may include a live, web-based, or recorded presentation, teleconference, virtual meeting, panel discussion, or workshop.
No more than 10 hours of the 20 CE hours may be earned by completing a relevant college course. The course must be at least 3 academic credit hours with a grade of “C” or better and the coursework must be relevant to PTCB’s PTCE Content Outline.
Credit may be earned for unpaid participation in certain PTCB activities and functions that are essential to maintaining the Certification Program. The activities and functions that are eligible for CE hours and the amount of CE hours that will be granted are at the discretion of the PTCB Certification Council.
Beginning January 1, 2018, PTCB no longer accepts what is known as ‘in-service’ continuing education (CE) hours. More information can be found here.

CE COMPLETED FROM ACPE-ACCREDITED CE PROVIDERS

If you have completed CE activities from an ACPE-accredited CE provider, each CE activity will have an ACPE Universal Activity Number (UAN or ACPE Number):

Each UAN includes topic and target audience designators:

Pharmacy Technician-specific CE activities from ACPE-accredited CE providers have a ‘T’ target audience designator.
Patient safety-specific CE activities from ACPE-accredited CE providers will have a ‘05’ topic designator.
Pharmacy law-specific CE activities from ACPE-accredited CE providers will have a ‘03’ topic designator.

CE COMPLETED FROM NON-ACPE-ACCREDITED CE PROVIDERS:

CE activity will be accepted if PTCB determines that the activity contains subject matter listed within PTCB’s PTCE ® Content Outline.
Pharmacy law CE activities from non-ACPE-accredited CE providers must address federal, state, or local laws and/or regulations affecting the practice of pharmacy.
Patient safety CE activities from non-ACPE-accredited CE providers must address “the prevention of healthcare errors, and the elimination or mitigation of patient injury caused by healthcare errors,” as defined in the ACPE Policy and Procedures Manual.

RECERTIFICATION CYCLES:

All CE hours are required to be completed during each recertification cycle for you to maintain an active PTCB certification status.
A recertification cycle begins when certification is initially provided or when a renewal application is approved and ends on the certification expiration date, lasting approximately 2 years.
CE hours completed before the start of a recertification cycle cannot be applied toward future recertification cycles.
CE hours completed after the certification expiration date cannot be applied toward recertification.

60-DAY REPORTING PERIOD FOR CE INFORMATION TO CPE MONITOR:

ACPE-accredited CE providers have 60 days to report CE completion information to the NABP CPE Monitor.
PTCB verifies CE completion information 60 days after the date an application is submitted using CPE Monitor as the auditing tool. If CE information in CPE Monitor is found to be non-compliant with CE requirements, your application will be returned to you after the completion of the 60-day verification period.

ATTESTING TO CE COMPLETION:

When applying for renewal, you must attest to completing all CE requirements within your recertification cycle and select the statement that confirms the source of the CE activities you have completed:

If you select “I attest that: I have EARNED ALL 20 continuing education (CE) from ACPE-accredited providers”:

PTCB will check the information in CPE Monitor to verify your completion of all CE hours within your last recertification cycle for a period of 60 days from the date of your application submission.
Note: PTCB requires a minimum of 15 T-specific CE hours and accepts a maximum of 5 P-specific CE hours for applications submitted on or after September 1, 2020. At least one (1) hour of CE activity must have the ‘03’ ACPE topic designator for pharmacy law, and at least one (1) hour of CE activity must have the ‘05’ ACPE topic designator for patient safety.

If you select “I attest that I have earned continuing education (CE) from ACPE-accredited providers AND/OR FROM non ACPE-accredited providers”:

PTCB will check the information in CPE Monitor to verify the completion of CE hours within your last recertification cycle 60 days after the date of your application submission and will review your manually entered CE information.

If PTCB is not able to verify that your CE activities meet requirements, your application will be returned for non-compliance. See Why was my CPhT renewal application returned? What do I need to do? for more information.

CE ACTIVITY RECOMMENDATIONS:

PTCB does not provide or recommend specific CE providers or activities.
Example CE providers are listed here.
Example CE activities are listed in the CE Directory.

CE AUDITS:

PTCB randomly selects recertification applications for audits of CE completion information. Selected certificants are notified by email with instructions.
Documentation (certificates of completion/statements of credit) must include your name, activity/program title, completion date, CE provider name, and number of hours awarded. See What are the requirements for proof of completion for a CE audit for more information.
If available, PTCB prefers that you provide your CPE Monitor transcript, rather than individual certificates of completion/statements of credit. Instructions for obtaining a copy of your CPE Monitor transcript can be found here.
Records of CE hours earned during each recertification cycle must be maintained by certificants for at least 1 year after the recertification cycle ends.

More information on PTCB’s continuing education requirements can be found here.

Related articles: