Report of Regents Professional Practice Committee to The Board of Regents
Regents Committee on Professional Practice
Regent Norwood, Co-Chair, Regent Cottrell, Co-Chair, Vice Chancellor Finn, Regent Cea, Regent Collins, Regent Wills, Regent Catania, and Regent Hale.
The Professional Practice Committee held its scheduled meeting on December 12, 2023. All members were present, except for Regent Catherine Collins and Vice Chancellor Josephine Victoria Finn, who were excused. Chancellor Lester W. Young, Regent Luis O. Reyes, and Regent Shino Tanikawa also attended the meeting, but did not vote on any action.
ACTION ITEMS
Professional Discipline Cases [PCC EXS (A) 1 – 3]
The Committee recommends that the reports of the Regents Review Committees, including rulings, findings of fact, determinations as to guilt, and recommendations, by unanimous or majority vote, contained in those reports which have been distributed to you, be accepted in four cases. In addition, the Committee recommends, upon the recommendation of the Committee on the Professions, that 28 consent order applications and 11 surrender applications be granted.
These recommendations are made following the review of 43 cases involving fourteen registered professional nurses, eleven licensed practical nurses, two massage therapists, one certified public accountant, one dentist, one pediatric nurse certificate of incorporation, one pharmacist, one physical therapy assistant, one psychologist, one registered professional nurse who is also certified as a nurse practitioner in Family Health, one registered professional nurse who is also certified as a nurse practitioner in Pediatrics, one respiratory therapist who is also a respiratory technician, one respiratory therapy technician, one speech-language pathologist, one veterinarian, and one veterinary technician.
Long-Term Clinical Clerkships [PPC EXS (A) 4]
The Committee recommends that the applications for Medical University of the Americas, University of Queensland, and Universidad Autónoma De Guadalajara to place students in long-term clinical clerkships in New York be approved, in accordance with and subject to the recommendations of the Advisory Committee on Long-term Clinical Clerkships.
Proposed Amendment of Sections 77.4, 77.5 and 77.10 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education Relating to the Profession of Physical Therapy [PPC (A) 1] – Department staff presented for emergency action proposed amendments to conform the Commissioner’s regulations to Chapter 511 of the Laws of 2022, which effective February 17, 2024, amends the Education Law by creating a new legally protected title of “licensed physical therapist assistant” and eliminating the prior protected title of “certified physical therapist assistant.”
The Committee recommends that sections 77.4, 77.5, and 77.10 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education be amended, as submitted, effective February 17, 2024, as an emergency action upon a finding by the Board of Regents that such action is necessary for the preservation of the public health and general welfare in order to timely implement the provisions of Chapter 511 of the Laws of 2022, which becomes effective February 17, 2024.
The motion passed unanimously.
Proposed Amendment of Section 64.7 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education Relating to the Execution by Registered Professional Nurses of Non-Patient Specific Orders to Provide Emergency Medical Services and Administer Pregnancy Tests [PPC (A) 2] – Department staff presented for emergency action proposed amendments to conform the Commissioner’s regulations to Chapter 193 of the Laws of 2023, which effective July 19, 2023, authorizes physicians to prescribe non-patient specific orders that registered professional nurses may perform including electrocardiogram test to detect signs and symptoms of coronary syndrome, administering point-of-care glucose tests to evaluate acute mental status changes in persons with suspected hypoglycemia, administering tests and intravenous lines to persons that meet severe sepsis and sepsis shock criteria, and pregnancy tests.
The Committee recommends that section 64.7 of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education be amended, as submitted, effective December 12, 2023, as an emergency action upon a finding by the Board of Regents that such action is necessary for the preservation of the public health and general welfare to timely conform the Commissioner’s regulations to implement the requirements of Chapter 193 of the Laws of 2023, which became effective July 19, 2023.
The motion passed unanimously.
MOTION FOR ACTION BY FULL BOARD
The Professional Practice Committee recommends, and we move, that the Board of Regents act affirmatively upon each recommendation in the written report of the Committee's deliberations at its meeting on December 12, 2023, copies of which have been distributed to each Regent.
MATTERS NOT REQUIRING BOARD ACTION
Deputy Commissioner Sarah Benson reviewed the items on the Consent Agenda.