Continuing Education

Different terminology is used for continuing education credit.

FP-C/ CCP-C Renewal uses the measurement of contact hours in which one contact hour equals 50 minutes. Following are some guidelines to assist in determining contact hours:

1 contact hour equals 1 CECH, 1 CERP, 1 CEARP, or 1 CME
1 CEU or continuing education unit equals 1 contact hour
1 academic semester credit equals 15 contact hours
1 academic quarter credit equals 10 contact hours
1 academic trimester credit equals 12 contact hours

CP-C Recertification
For the first recertification cycle, certifications expiring before 30 January 2021, are only renewable through examination. IBSC Medical Directors, Drs. Cole & Wilcox determined that because of the rapid growth in this specialty area and the dynamic nature of the exam material combined with the lack of CP-C continuing education widely available, validating a certificant's competency in community paramedicine can only be accomplished through an examination process.

General Guidelines

Continuing Education (CE) should have a clear and direct application to the practice of medicine in the area of specialty.
For FP-C®/ CCP-C® a minimum of 100 contact hours must be submitted; 75 of the contact hours must be in the CLINICAL category. 16 CLINICAL hours must be from an approved FP-C®/ CCP-C® review class (Approved Review Course List). 25 CE's may be in the OPERATIONAL category to complete the 100 hours. It is acceptable to have more than 75 of the contact hours in the CLINICAL category.
For TP-C® a minimum of 75 contact hours of CLINICAL category with a TEMS focus and 25 hours tactical OPERATIONAL education. TCCC is acceptable for 16 CE hours.
For the first CP-C recertification cycle (certifications expiring before 30 January 2021) are only renewable through reexamination.
For CE to be applicable for renewal, it must have occurred during the four-year period of certification. For example, if the certification expires March 31, 2020, the four-year period of certification is from April 1, 2016 until March 31, 2020.
It is recommended that supporting documents be uploaded in your Account at least three months and no more than four months prior to certification expiration (processing fees will apply).
Renewal requests that are submitted to IBSC® beyond the certification expiration date will not be accepted. Candidates who are wanting to renew their credentials after the expiration date will need to register and test to maintain their credential.
Renewal requests are processed according to when they are received by the IBSC® and the certification expiration date.
Candidates who successfully meet all program requirements will have their credential renewed for the following four years. Candidates who do not meet the renewal program requirements must successfully pass the exam again to maintain their credential.
It is the responsibility of the candidate to identify the number of CLINICAL and OPERATIONAL hours of CE activities using the following IBSC® renewal guidelines. IBSC® will make the final determination as to category and acceptability of submissions.
The IBSC® will perform 100% audit of CE's so each candidate must submit a copy of all CE documents.
All renewal fees are nonrefundable.

Eligibility Requirements

Current IBSC® Specialty Certification
Current unrestricted paramedic license in the state or country of practice. Any restrictions must be reported to the IBSC.
Meet the requirements of completing 100 contact hours of CE

Application Procedure

To renew by CE, the following needs to be submitted 2-4 months prior to your expiration date:

Continuing education certificates/documentation as outlined on this page.
Renewal fee (a $125 late processing fee applies to all renewals received less than 30 days from certification expiration date). Note: The late processing fee does not guarantee your credential will be approved before its expiration date.
Copy of your current paramedic license.

Measurement of Continuing Education Hours

Different terminology is used for continuing education credit. FP-C®/ CCP-C® Renewal uses the measurement of contact hours in which one contact hour equals 50 minutes. Following are some guidelines to assist in determining contact hours:

1 contact hour equals 1 CECH, 1 CERP, 1 CEARP, or 1 CME
1 CEU or continuing education unit equals 1 contact hour
1 academic semester credit equals 15 contact hours
1 academic quarter credit equals 10 contact hours
1 academic trimester credit equals 12 contact hours

Clinical Category

This category includes any educational offerings that primarily contain information applicable to direct practice in the clinical area of Critical Care medicine. The program content must be primarily focused on knowledge the paramedic can apply in providing direct care to an individual patient population. Examples include topics such as: "Flight Physiology," "Management of the Trauma Patient," or "Toxicology." Acceptable accredited college courses include educational offerings that have a clinical focus. Examples: Anatomy & Physiology, Pathophysiology, Chemistry, Biochemistry, or Organic Chemistry.

Operational Category

25 CE's may be in the OPERATIONAL category to complete the 100 hours. It is acceptable to have more than 75 of the contact hours in the CLINICAL category, as you may not have any OPERATIONAL CE.

This category includes any educational offerings related to the professional practice of paramedicine and the
emergency medical system. Examples include topics such as "Developing a Quality Improvement System,"
"Legal Aspects of Flight Care," or "Public Relations in the Prehospital Environment." Accredited college
courses that focus on the nonclinical aspects of flight medicine must be categorized under OPERATIONAL. Examples would include: "Medical Ethics" and "Leadership and Management."

The IBSC® recognizes there are accredited CE programs, which consist of multiple lectures, such as national/regional symposiums, or IBSC approved review courses. Although a CE provider or approver may categorize the CE courses, it is the certificant's responsibility to ensure the appropriate categorization of CE

Non-Acceptable Sources of Continuing Education

Academic course work not clinically or professionally related (e.g. English literature)
In-services less than 50 minutes in length
New Employee Orientation
BCLS Provider/Instructor (CPR) courses
ACLS/ACLS-EP Provider/Instructor courses
PEPP/PALS/ENPC Provider/Instructor courses
PHTLS/BTLS/ITLS/TNCC Provider/Instructor courses.
AMLS Provider/Instructor courses

Acceptable Sources of Continuing Education

Seminars and Independent Studies

It is recommended, but not required, that an accredited organizational body approve CE obtained through seminars and independent studies. (This is because the CE certificate received from the program gives the essential information.) Examples of accrediting bodies are national associations such as the American College of Emergency Physicians
(ACEP), Air Medical Physicians Association (AMPA), American College of Cardiology
(ACC), Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), and some state EMS boards.
Approvers are those groups that approve continuing education whereas providers are those responsible for development and delivery of the program. For example, a hospital may have a course and be the provider of the course. However, on the certificate, a statement would identify who approved their continuing education offering. Sometimes the approver and provider may be the same.
Continuing education that has not been approved by an accredited paramedic/physician organization is acceptable if the content is beneficial to paramedicine and is a minimum of 50 minutes.
Continuing Medical Education (CME) programs specific to physicians dependent upon the content.
Neonatal Resucitation Program (NRP), STABLE Program are acceptable for FP-C®/CCP-C®
TCCC is acceptable for TP-C®

Accrediting Bodies

Please note that IBSC® is not a continuing educaiton accrediting body. If you have questions related to the number of contact hours approved for a particular educational course or seminar or to have a course approved, contact an accrediting organization (e.g.CECBEMS).

College Courses

These courses can be used in both the CLINICAL and OPERATIONAL category, dependent upon their topic.
A grade of "C" or better must be obtained for renewal usage from an accredited institution.
The courses must be applicable to the practice of flight medicine.

Delivering Presentations or Teaching an Accredited Paramedic Course

Each lecture may be used only once during the renewal period.
Each lecture must be a minimum of 50 minutes in length.
The category of CLINICAL or OPERATIONAL will be determined by the content.
Submit course schedule outlining areas taught and how many hours. Must be on organization letterhead.

Publications - (Authoring the Chapter of a Book, Authoring a Book or Writing a Journal Article)

The written piece must be of educational value and have references.
The category of CLINICAL or OTHER will be determined by the majority of the content (or main theme) of the publication.
Publications written by more than one author will have the allowable credit evenly distributed among all authors.
Contact hours will be awarded in the following amounts:
Chapter of a book 10 contact hours

Authoring of a book to a maximum of 150 pages 25 contact hours
Authoring of a book more than 150 pages 50 contact hours
Authoring a journal article 5 contact hours
Reviewing a journal article for a peer reviewed journal equals 1 contact hour

Item Writing

Item writing for professional usage such as a publication is acceptable for FP-C® Renewal.
Item writing for professional examinations such as the FP-C®/ CCP-C®, CFRN®, or CCEMTP is acceptable for FP-C®/ CCP-C® Renewal.
Each item will be considered .5 contact hours and will apply to either CLINICAL or OPERATIONAL dependent upon content

FP-C® , CCP-C® and TP-C® Renewal Audit

The IBSC® performs a 100% audit if all CE material submitted. Each candidate will submit copies of all related CE. Documentation for seminars should include certificates for those CE's from an accredited provider and for non-accredited seminar activities; written documentation of attendance by the instructor or supervisor is acceptable. The documentation needs to include:

Name of participant
Dates of the course
Length of activity (in hours)
Title of the course
A grade report if using academic credits
If author of a book, a copy of the title page, number of pages, and table of contents.
If authoring a chapter, a copy of the title page and table of contents with chapter name and author
If published in a journal, a table of contents with title and author
If reviewing a journal article for a peer reviewed journal equal, a copy of the review log or confimation provided by the publisher
If an item writer, documentation from the editor or organization with the number of items in total and the number within each category of CLINICAL or OPERATIONAL.

Other supportive material may include syllabi, course outlines, handouts or other course materials. It is the candidate's responsibility to maintain complete records in the event of being audited. Please note that verification cards will not be acceptable proof of attendance.

Begin Recertification