Individual Educational Activity Process

If you are planning an educational activity designed to increase/change/improve nurses' knowledge, skills, and/or practice, you can apply to NCNA for approval to award contact hours for the activity. 

APPROVAL PROCESS: If you are planning an educational activity and would like to offer nursing contact hours for this single activity, you should use this section. Once approved, this activity can be provided at your discretion during the approval period. Please note you are encouraged to submit your individual activity application a minimum of eight (8) weeks before the scheduled start date of the activity. This is explained further within the section.

North Carolina Nurses Association is accredited as an approver of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

To apply for approval to award contact hours:

• Complete an Individual Educational Activity Application: Please select the appropriate application to submit. For all content related to the care and treatment of patients, please use the Clinical Individual Educational Activity Application (IAA) (Revised June 2023). For all other content, please use the Non-Clinical Individual Educational Activity Application (IAA) (Revised June 2023). Note: if you are planning a multi-session activity that includes clinical and non-clinical sessions, please use the Clinical Individual Education Activity Application. Presenters who are only involved in presenting non-clinical topics and are not in a position to control content for the clinical portions of the activity do not need to be assessed for relevant financial relationships.     
• Be sure to include any additional materials/forms/attachments required/requested within the application.
• Please be sure to also complete/review the educational materials and the Application Attachments that are located after the Fee Schedule.
• Once completed, submit your application via email to CE@ncnurses.org. Please submit it as one file.
• If you plan to submit more than one application at the same time, it is essential that you still submit each application as a separate, complete item. Please email each application separately.
• To ensure adequate time for the application's review and approval process, applicants are encouraged to submit their application at least 8 weeks in advance of the planned delivery date. (See fee chart below.)

After submission to NCNA:

• NCNA will confirm receipt of the activity application and assign an activity number. Payment is due at this time.
• The submitted activity application is sent to Nurse Peer Reviewers to evaluate whether it is complete and meets all the ANCC/NCNA criteria for awarding contact hours.  
• If any additional documentation or clarifications are requested as a result of the review process, applicants are responsible for successfully completing and submitting the additional information requested by the stated due date before NCNA can consider approving the activity to award contact hours.  
• All approved individual activities are granted approval for a two-year period (unless a shorter period is requested in the application).
• After approval, the activity can be delivered as often as desired within the approval period. 

Application Submission and Fee

Payment is due upon receipt of the IAA. NCNA will confirm receipt and assign an activity number via email to the application contact. Please refer to the IAA number with the payment.

NCNA will accept checks payable to NCNA or charge (Amex, Discover, Mastercard, or Visa). There is a 3% Credit Card Convenience Fee. Call 919-821-4250 Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM to pay by phone.

IAA fees are determined by the number of contact hours and length of the review period. Use the table below to determine the cost. The review period begins on the day of the IAA submission (day 1) and ends on the activity start.

• Example: An IAA was created for four contact hours and an activity start date of March 10^th. It was emailed to CE@ncnurses.org on January 1^st. The review period is 69 days. The IAA fee is $300.

Application Attachments

DISCLOSURE TOOLS - For ALL Clinical Individual Activity applications, the Relevant Financial Relationship tool must be completed for all those in control of content, including all planning committee members and speakers/authors.   
NCNA Financial Disclosure Form (2015 Criteria) (Revised Aug 2023)   

LEARNER DISCLOSURES 

Clinical Education Applications: Disclosures must be shared with the learner sometime prior to the beginning of the educational activity. Required disclosures include:

1. All criteria for completion (what the participant must do/meet to earn the contact hours),
2. A statement regarding the presence or absence of any relevant financial relationships for those in a position to control the content of the activity,
3. And, the NCNA nursing continuing professional development approval statement.

Sample Disclosure Form - Clinical Activity (REV 12.2021)

Other required disclosures when applicable:

• If the planned education activity has a joint provider, then the name of the joint provider(s) must be disclosed to the learner prior to the start of the education.
• If the planned education activity has received any kind of commercial support from an ineligible organization, then the name of that organization must be disclosed to learners prior to the start of the education. Ineligible organizations are those that make, sell, resell, produce, or distribute goods used on or by patients. See ANCC/ACCME Standards for Independence and Integrity for Accredited Education Info Package.
• If the activity is available to the learner as enduring material, then an expiration date (the last date available to earn contact hours) needs to be disclosed to the learner prior to the start of the education.

Non-Clinical Education Applications: Disclosures must be shared with the learner sometime prior to the beginning of the educational activity. Required disclosures include:

4. All criteria for completion (what the participant must do/meet to earn the contact hours).
5. The NCNA nursing continuing professional development approval statement.

Sample Disclosure Form - Non-Clinical (REV 12.2021)

Other required disclosures when applicable:

• If the planned education activity has a joint provider, then the name of the joint provider(s) must be disclosed to the learner prior to the start of the education.
• If the planned education activity has received any kind of commercial support then the name of the commercial support organization must be disclosed to learners prior to the start of the education. See ANCC content integrity standards.
• If the activity is available to the learner as an enduring material, then an expiration date (last date available to earn contact hours) needs to be disclosed to the learner prior to the start of the education.

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION - The certificate must contain the name/address of the organization providing the contact hours, space for the name of the attendee, title of educational activity, date of education completed, number of contact hours awarded, and the NCNA approval statement. If the activity contains any contact hours for Advance Practice Nurses on pharmacotherapeutics, then those hours need to be included on the certificate.   

EVALUATION - Every activity must be evaluated following the completion of the activity. 2015 ANCC criteria require evaluating whether or not the desired learning outcomes were met. 
Sample Evaluation Tool

 
Sample Evaluation Tool

Required Written Agreement (If Applicable)

Commercial Support Agreement (2015 Criteria) (Revised Dec 2021)

Additional Information

PNP and NP Roles (Rev. May 2023)

Financial Disclosure Determination Decision Making Model

Responsibilities of the Nurse Planner (Rev. Dec. 2021)

Quality Outcome Measures for Individual Activity Level (2.4.19)

CNE Record Keeping Requirements (April 2016)

Gap Analysis Tool

Educational Planning Table - Live & Enduring Material (Rev July 2016) 

ANCC/ACCME Standards for Independence and Integrity for Accredited Education Info Package

ANCC-Principles of Adult Learning Theory