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Iowa Physical Therapy Continuing Education Requirements

Updated 8/17/2024

How many continuing education hours are required during a reporting period?

Physical therapists licensed in Iowa must complete a minimum of forty (40) hours of continuing education every two (2) years.

Physical therapy assistants licensed in Iowa must complete a minimum of twenty (20) hours of continuing education every two (2) years.

New Licensees

Those persons licensed for the first time shall not be required to complete continuing education as a prerequisite for the first renewal of their licenses. Continuing education hours acquired any time from the initial licensing until the second license renewal may be used. The new licensee will be required to complete a minimum of forty (40) hours of continuing education per biennium for physical therapists and a minimum of twenty (20) hours for physical therapist assistants each subsequent license renewal.

Due Date

The biennial license renewal period for a license to practice as a PT or PTA shall begin on the sixteenth day of the birth month and end on the fifteenth day of the birth month two (2) years later.

How is contact hour defined?

“Hour of continuing education” means at least fifty (50) minutes spent by a licensee in actual attendance at and completion of an approved continuing education activity.

Can CE credits be carried over into the next reporting period?

No hours of continuing education shall be carried over into the next biennium except for a new licensee. A licensee whose license was reactivated during the current renewal compliance period may use continuing education earned during the compliance period for the first renewal following reactivation.

Are there any specific courses that must be taken?

Mandatory training in child and dependent adult abuse identification and reporting.

The licensee shall maintain written documentation for three (3) years after mandatory training including program date(s), content, duration, and proof of participation.

What types of activities can be used for the continuing education requirements?

Activity

Hours

Attending workshops, conferences, or symposiums.

Accessing online training, such as viewing interactive conferences, attending webinars, or completing online training courses.

At least fifty (50) minutes spent by a licensee in actual attendance at and completion of an approved continuing education activity.

Completing an American Physical Therapy Association-approved post-professional clinical residency or fellowship.

A licensee will receive one (1) hour of credit for every two (2) hours spent in clinical residency, up to a maximum of twenty (20) hours.

Clinical residency hours may not be used for credit if the licensee is also seeking credit hours earned for post-professional academic coursework in the same renewal period.

Directly supervising students for clinical education if the students being supervised are from an accredited PT or PTA program and are participating in a full-time clinical experience (defined as approximately forty (40) hours per week, ranging from one (1) to eighteen (18) weeks).

One (1) hour will be awarded for every 160 contact hours of supervision. A maximum of eight (8) hours for a physical therapist and four (4) hours for a PTA may be awarded per biennium.

The PT or PTA must have documentation from the accredited educational program indicating the number of hours spent supervising a student.

Presenting professional programs that meet the criteria.

Two (2) hours of credit will be awarded for each hour of presentation for the first offering of the course.

A course schedule or brochure must be maintained for audit.

Completing academic courses that directly relate to the professional competency of the licensee.

Official transcripts indicating successful completion of academic courses that apply to the field of physical therapy will be necessary in order for the licensee to receive the following continuing education credits:

One (1) academic semester hour = Fifteen (15) continuing education hours of credit

One (1) academic trimester hour = Twelve (12) continuing education hours of credit

One (1) academic quarter hour = Ten (10) continuing education hours of credit

Teaching in an approved college, university, or graduate school.

The licensee may receive the following continuing education credits on a one-time basis for the first offering of a course:

One (1) academic semester hour = 15 continuing education hours of credit

One (1) academic trimester hour = Twelve (12) continuing education hours of credit

One (1) academic quarter hour = Ten (10) continuing education hours of credit

Authoring research or other activities, the results of which are published in a recognized professional publication.

The licensee shall receive five (5) hours of credit per page.

Participating in professional organizations related to the practice of physical therapy.

One (1) credit hour received for each six (6) months of active service as an officer, delegate, or committee member, for a maximum of four (4) hours of credit per biennium.

Verification of participation must be provided by the professional organization to document the continuing education credit.

Are there limitations on the types of courses that can be taken?

Continuing education hours of credit in the following topics are not considered to be directly and primarily related to the clinical application of physical therapy and therefore must not exceed a maximum combined total of ten (10) hours of credit for a physical therapist licensee and five (5) hours of credit for a physical therapist assistant licensee:

    • Business-related topics, such as marketing, time management, government regulations, and other like topics.
    • Personal skills topics, such as career burnout, communication skills, human relations, and other like topics.
    • General health topics, such as clinical research, CPR, mandatory reporter training, and other like topics.

What type of courses or activities are not allowed?

N/A

What type of approval is needed for the courses?

N/A

What are the reporting requirements?

N/A

How long must continuing education records be retained?

N/A

Waiver

N/A

Audit

N/A

References

IAC 645—203

About Us

Zachary Edgar JD, LLM is the managing partner for Therapy Comply.  Zachary is a healthcare attorney that specializes in federal and state healthcare regulatory issues particularly for physical, occupational, and speech therapy practices.  

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