Continuing Education 

Texas OT and OTA licensees are required to complete 24 contact hours of continuing education each renewal period in order to maintain licensure, and the CE must include an HHSC approved course on human trafficking that meets requirements as per the OT Rules. Licensees may earn more than the required minimum of CE hours. Refer to Chapter 367 of the OT Rules for further CE information and requirements. The licensee is solely responsible for keeping accurate documentation of all continuing education activities and for selecting continuing education as per the requirements in Chapter 367.

With the exception of the HHSC approved human trafficking course noted above, licensees are not required to take a course approved by a specific entity or take courses pre-approved by the Board. For the CE hours remaining after the HHSC approved human trafficking course, activities approved or offered by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) or the Texas Occupational Therapy Association (TOTA) are pre-approved for CE credit for license renewal. For courses from other providers, licensees are responsible for ensuring, for example, that such meet the definition of CE and are not an unacceptable activity as per §367.1, Continuing Education. Refer to Chapter 367 for further CE regulations. 

Please note the following regarding the CE hours remaining after completing the required HHSC approved human trafficking prevention course and determining the CE credit earned for such according to the OT Rules. 

      * There are many ways to earn CE for free. Refer to §367.2, Categories of Education, for categories of continuing education. Many of the categories included in that section, including those concerning the supervision of OT and OTA students, presentations by licensees, and mentorship, may be completed for free. Refer to the section for further regulations regarding these categories, including with regard to the maximum amount of CE that may be earned from each. See the links above for further resources.

      * There is no maximum of contact hours that can be earned for the renewal period for the following: in-service educational programs, training programs, institutes, seminars, workshops, facility-based courses, internet-based courses, conferences, and home-study courses with specified learning objectives. Hour for hour credit on program content only. Documentation shall include a certificate of completion or letter of verification. 

      * NBCOT Navigator® Activities. Licensees may earn CE for the completion of NBCOT Navigator activities. For such activities, 1 NBCOT CAU is the equivalent of 1 contact hour. No maximum. Documentation is a certificate of completion or letter of verification. Self-reflections and self-assessments, reading list and research portal activities, professional development plans, or similar activities are not eligible for CE credit.

      * AOTA Benchmark. Licensees may earn CE for the completion of the AOTA Benchmark. Documentation is a certificate of completion or letter of verification indicating credit awarded. No maximum.

Documentation must identify the licensee by name, and must include the date and title of the course; the name of the authorized signer and either the signature of the authorized signer or the official seal, letterhead, or logo of the authorized signer if an area designated for a signature is not included; and the number of hours or contact hours awarded for the course. 

      When continuing education units (CEUs), professional development units (PDUs), or other units or credits are listed on the documentation, such must be accompanied by documentation from the continuing education provider noting the equivalence of the units or credits in terms of hours or contact hours. Such is not needed for AOTA CEUs, but be sure you know what such represent in hours or contact hours.

      Remember that a contact hour is not the same as a learning credit, PDU, etc. When you renew, you must attest to your CE in contact hours.

Information regarding categories of CE activities, including additional categories and any limits concerning the number of contact hours that may be earned from and the required documentation for each, can be found in §367.2, Categories of Education. §367.3, Continuing Education Audit, provides further information regarding documentation.

      For example, CE documentation includes, but is not limited to: transcripts, AOTA self-study completion certificates, copies of official sign-in or attendance sheets, course certificates of attendance, certificates of completion, and letters of verification. In addition, licensees may wish to keep supporting documentation that helps demonstrate how an activity meets CE requirements. For example, an official course description, syllabus, outline, and/or learning objectives may be useful if, for instance, the licensee is randomly selected for the CE Audit, as a certificate often lists just the name of a course and does not provide further information about its content. 

As per §367.1(b)(4), licensees who submit their renewal with all required items prior to the month when their license expires may count CE completed during their license’s expiration month for their next renewal period. Please note that if you are you are counting CE activities as per §367.1(b)(4), you will need to renew with a paper renewal form.

      Example: The license expires March 31, 2019, and the licensee wishes to take CE in March, 2019, for the next renewal in 2021, as the licensee has already earned enough CE for the 2019 renewal. The licensee would need to renew during the month or two preceding the birth month, i.e., renew in January, 2019, or February, 2019 (and verify the renewal on the Look up a License page). If the licensee does so, then s/he may begin earning CE in March, 2019, for the next renewal period, which would end March, 2021. However, the licensee will need to renew by paper in 2021.

Refer to the full Chapter 367 of the OT Rules for further CE regulations.  

Refer to §371.2, Retired Status, of the OT Rules for additional information regarding CE requirements for those initiating or renewing retired status.

Note: See the OT Rules for further regulations; Chapter 367 of the OT Rules details CE. See the Human Trafficking Training tab on this page for information concerning the required human trafficking prevention training.

What is Acceptable CE?

The Act mandates licensee participation in a continuing education program for license renewal. All activities taken to complete this requirement must meet the definition of continuing education as outlined in §367.1 of the OT Rules. The licensee is solely responsible for keeping accurate documentation of all continuing education activities and for selecting continuing education as per the requirements in Chapter 367. Refer to Chapter 367 for further CE requirements, including to ensure that the activity falls under one of the categories of education in §367.2, Categories of Education. Remember that the required CE includes the completion of an HHSC-approved human trafficking course as per the OT Rules. 

Resource if an activity is not pre-approved: Decision Tree: Is an Activity Eligible for CE?

Examples of Acceptable Activities

Note: These are representative course topics. The licensee must determine if a specific activity meets requirements according to the OT Rules. Licensees are not limited to completing CE on the sample topics listed below. Please note that though topic titles may be general, the content, etc. for such courses would need to demonstrate that they met the definition of CE and further requirements in Chapter 367.

     Alzheimer’s

     Intervention Techniques for Alzheimer’s Disease

     Anatomy and Physiology of the Hand

     Training in Physical Agent Modalities for Hand Patients

     Evaluation of and Treatment Strategies for Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

     OT Intervention for Adolescents Exhibiting Violent Behavior

     OT Strategies for Students with Attention Deficit Disorder 

     Stroke and Vascular Disorders

     OT Intervention for Individuals Recovering from a Stroke

     Managing Adult Hemiplegia

     Ethics in Occupational Therapy

     Regulatory Issues in Occupational Therapy

     Billing for Occupational Therapy Services

Note: See the OT Rules for further regulations. Chapter 367 of the OT Rules details CE.

Unacceptable Activities:

Unacceptable Activities. Unacceptable professional development activities not eligible for continuing education include but are not limited to:

   (A) Any non-instructional time frames such as breaks, meals, introductions, and pre/post testing.

   (B) Business meetings.

   (C) Exhibit hall attendance.

   (D) Courses that provide information about the work setting’s philosophy, policies, or procedures or designed to educate employees about a specific work setting.

   (E) Courses in topics concerning professionalism or customer service.

   (F) Courses such as: social work; defensive driving; water safety; team building; GRE, GMAT, MCAT preparation; general foreign languages; disposal of hazardous waste; patient privacy; CPR; First Aid; HIPAA; and FERPA.

 Note: This is just an overview.  See Chapter 367 of the OT Rules for further information and regulations.    

1.  Is it unacceptable because it may be an activity that many of the employees in a particular practice setting must complete and does not meet requirements in Chapter 367, for example, a course that provides information about the work setting’s philosophy, policies, or procedures or designed to educate employees about a specific work setting?

2. Is it unacceptable because it does not meet requirements in Chapter 367 and may even be a repetitive activity, such as courses related to patient privacy, HIPAA and/or FERPA, preparing for natural disasters and other emergencies, infection control, disposal of hazardous waste, CPR, the prevention of fires, etc.?     

(For information regarding repeating acceptable CE activities, please see §367.1.)

3.  Is it unacceptable because it does not meet requirements in Chapter 367, such as a course on social work; defensive driving; water safety; team building; general foreign languages, etc.? 

4.  Is it unacceptable because it is a course in topics concerning professionalism or customer service?

5.  Is it unacceptable because it falls under any of the provisions in §367.1(a)(2) and/or fails to meet any of the other requirements regarding CE in the OT Rules?

Sample Unacceptable Activities:

The list that follows contains examples of topics that are NOT acceptable for CE credit. While many of these topics may enrich your relationship with your clients or enhance the success of your practice, they are not required in order for licensees to provide occupational therapy services.

Please note that this list is not exclusive. Courses in other topics may be unacceptable activities. Check to make sure each activity you intend to claim for CE is eligible for credit according to the OT Rules. 

          General Foreign Language Course

          Social Work Courses

          Defensive Driving

          Water Safety Courses

          Team Building Workshops

          GRE, GMAT, MCAT Preparation

          Courses such as CPR, First Aid, disposal of hazardous waste, patient privacy, HIPAA & FERPA, or similar courses 

          Customer Service or Professionalism courses

          New Employee Orientation Courses

Human Trafficking Prevention Training Requirement

HB 2059 of the 86^th Legislative Session added the completion of a training course approved by the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) on the prevention of human trafficking as a condition for license renewal for certain health care practitioners. HB 2059 requires that HHSC approve at least one course that is available without charge.

As part of the minimum hours of required continuing education for each renewal, OTs and OTAs must complete a training course on human trafficking that is approved by HHSC. Documentation of completion of a training course is a certificate of completion or letter of verification indicating credit awarded.

Only human trafficking training courses that are approved by HHSC pursuant to HB 2059 may be used to meet this requirement; no other courses may be used to satisfy this requirement. Refer to HHSC’s related web page for information regarding approved courses; the link to that page appears under “Accessing an HHSC Approved Course,” below. 

Licensees may complete this training any time during the current renewal period prior to renewal. Licensees are encouraged to not wait until the last minute to complete this required training. 

Note that completing this training is a CE requirement for each renewal period, not a one-time requirement.

Remember that approval by AOTA or TOTA does not in any way suggest and/or ensure that a course is approved by HHSC or indicate that completion of the course will satisfy the training requirement. If the course is not approved by HHSC, as previously noted, it will not meet the human trafficking training requirement, regardless of whether it has been approved or offered by AOTA or TOTA.

When selecting a human trafficking training course to meet the requirement, ensure that the course is approved by HHSC pursuant to HB 2059. Refer to HHSC’s list of approved courses to confirm this.

Refer to Chapter 367 for further requirements concerning CE documentation.

To renew, licensees must meet CE requirements, which includes having met this training requirement. Part of such is having the required documentation for the completed activity. Licensees are required to keep the CE documentation.

The OT Rules include that the completion of one training course per renewal period to meet the training requirement is pre-approved for continuing education credit up to a maximum of 2 contact hours. Additional continuing education credit may be earned for a training course exceeding 2 hours if the additional hours meet the requirements of Chapter 367 of the OT Rules.