To accept paramedic hours of clinical experience towards the requirement of 500-hour requirement for licensure as a registered nurse, similar to the 150 hours of credit allowed for persons licensed as practical nurses.

 In accordance with Virginia law, the petition to amend the regulation was posted on the Virginia Regulatory Townhall at www.townhall.virginia.gov.  It has also been filed with the Register of Regulations for publication on July 28, 2014. Comment on the petition from interested parties will be accepted from July 28th until August 27, 2014. 

Following receipt of all comments on the petition, the request will be considered by the Board of Nursing at its meeting scheduled for September 16, 2014.

The Board of Nursing considered the request at its meeting on September 16, 2104 and, after much discussion, declined to initiate rulemaking.  While the Board recognizes the excellent contributions of paramedics in emergency medical services, it does not feel that the training and experience provides a broad range of patient care in a variety of settings.  Additionally, the educational curriculum of a licensed practical nurse includes rotations across the spectrum of the life cycle with various populations, so it would be difficult to equate the clinical experience.