Sec. 105.008. STUDY OF ALTERNATE WAYS TO ASSURE CLINICAL COMPETENCY OF GRADUATES OF NURSING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

(a) In this section:

(1) "Clinical competency assessment program" means a professional nursing prelicensure program that employs a criterion-referenced summative performance examination, developed by subject matter experts, to verify its graduates' attainment of the clinical competency necessary for initial licensure as a registered nurse.

(2) "Professional nursing prelicensure program" means a professional nursing educational program that prepares students to obtain an initial license as a registered nurse.

(3) "Research study" means the study described by Subsection (b).

(4) "Supervised clinical learning experiences program" means a professional nursing prelicensure program that requires students to complete a required number of supervised clinical learning experiences provided by qualified clinical faculty involving multiple, ongoing assessments and feedback.

(b) To the extent funding is available, the nursing resource section established under Section 105.002(b) shall conduct a research study to identify:

(1) a set of expected student outcomes in terms of clinical judgment and behaviors that professional nursing students should possess at the time of graduation from a professional nursing prelicensure program;

(2) standardized, reliable, and valid clinical exit evaluation tools that could be used to evaluate the competencies in clinical judgment and behaviors that professional nursing students possess at the time of graduation from a professional nursing prelicensure program;

(3) any correlation between the success rate of graduates of professional nursing prelicensure programs on standardized clinical exit evaluation tools and their educational and experiential background, including:

(A) length and type of health care work experience before entering the professional nursing prelicensure programs;

(B) health care work experience during the professional nursing prelicensure programs; and

(C) alternative methods of teaching clinical judgment and behaviors, including supervised clinicals and simulation laboratories; and

(4) any correlation between the required number of hours in supervised clinical learning experiences and expected student outcomes in terms of clinical judgment and behaviors.

(c) In addition to any other objective, the research study must be designed to determine if the graduates of a clinical competency assessment program are substantially equivalent to the graduates of supervised clinical learning experiences programs in terms of clinical judgments and behaviors. For purposes of this subsection, the clinical competency assessment program must be one that:

(1) has been requiring a clinical competency assessment for at least 10 years;

(2) has students who reside in this state;

(3) has graduates who have been considered by the Texas Board of Nursing to be eligible to apply for a registered nurse license as a result of graduating from the program on or before January 1, 2007; and

(4) conducts the clinical competency assessment at a facility or facilities located in this state under the supervision of a qualified clinical faculty member who is a registered nurse and who holds a master's or doctoral degree in nursing.

(d) Considerations to be used in determining substantial equivalence under Subsection (c) must include the differences between the clinical competency assessment program and the supervised clinical learning experiences program in:

(1) the methods of evaluating students' clinical judgment and behaviors;

(2) performance on standardized clinical exit evaluation tools;

(3) the ability of graduates to transition to and assimilate in the registered nurse's role; and

(4) passage rates on the National Council Licensure Examination.

(e) The nursing resource section shall contract with an independent researcher to develop the research design and conduct the research. The independent researcher must be selected by a selection committee composed of:

(1) one representative elected by a majority of the nursing advisory committee under Section 104.0155, who is the chair of the selection committee;

(2) one representative designated by the Texas Health Care Policy Council;

(3) the presiding officer of the Texas Board of Nursing;

(4) one representative of the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, designated by the governor;

(5) one representative designated by the Texas Hospital Association;

(6) one representative designated by the Texas Association of Business;

(7) one representative designated by a clinical competency assessment program that meets the requirements of Section 301.157(d-8), Occupations Code; and

(8) the nurse researcher member of the nursing advisory committee under Section 104.0155.

(f) The nursing resource section shall complete the study not later than June 30, 2014, and shall submit a report to the office of the governor, the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, and the House Committee on Public Health. The report must include a research abstract prepared by the independent researcher.

(g) The nursing resource section may cooperate with the Texas Board of Nursing and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in conducting the study.

(h) The nursing advisory committee formed under Section 104.0155 shall serve as the oversight committee for the study.

(i) Any data collected as part of the study that contains information identifying specific students, patients, or health care facilities is confidential, is not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code, and may not be released unless all identifying information is removed.

(j) In addition to funds appropriated by the legislature, the nursing resource section may solicit, receive, and spend grants, gifts, and donations from public or private sources for the purpose of conducting the study.

(k) If grants or other funds are available through the National Council of State Boards of Nursing that could be used to fund the study, the nursing resource section shall apply for the funds to the maximum amount available up to the estimated cost of the study. In making the application or accepting the funding, the nursing resource section may not relinquish any oversight responsibility for the study, including responsibility for designing and conducting the research or developing the findings.

Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 999 , Sec. 16, eff. June 19, 2009.