Section R4-19-201. Organization and Administration

A.      The parent institution of a nursing program shall be accredited as a post-secondary institution, college, or university, by an accrediting body that is recognized as an accrediting body by the U.S. Department of Education, and shall hold Arizona pri- vate post-secondary approval status if applicable. The parent institution shall submit evidence to the board of continuing accreditation after each reaccreditation review or action. If the parent institution holds both secondary and post-secondary accreditation, it shall operate any RN or PN program under its post-secondary accreditation.

B.       A nursing program shall have a written statement of mission and goals consistent with those of the parent institution and compatible with current concepts in nursing education and practice appropriate for the type of nursing program offered.

C.      A nursing program shall be an integral part of the parent insti- tution and shall have at a minimum equivalent status with other academic units of the parent institution.

D.      The parent institution shall center the administrative control of the nursing program in the nursing program administrator and shall provide the support and resources necessary to meet the requirements of R4-19-203 and R4-19-204.

E.       A nursing program shall provide an organizational chart that identifies the actual relationships, lines of authority, and chan- nels of communication within the program, and between the program and the parent institution.

F.       A nursing program shall have a written agreement between the program and each clinical agency where clinical experience is provided to the program's students that:

1.        Defines the rights and responsibilities of both the clinical agency and the nursing program,

2.        Lists the role and authority of the governing bodies of both the clinical agency and the nursing program,

3.        Allows faculty members of the program the right to par- ticipate in selecting learning experiences for students, and

4.        Contains a termination clause that provides  sufficient time for enrolled students to complete the clinical experi- ence upon termination of the agreement.

G.      A nursing program shall implement written policies and proce- dures that provide a mechanism for student input into the development of academic policies and procedures and allow students to anonymously evaluate faculty, nursing courses, clinical experiences, resources and the overall program.

H.      The parent institution shall appoint a sole individual to the full-time position of nursing program administrator. The par- ent institution shall ensure that the individual appointed meets or exceeds the requirements of, and fulfills the duties specified in, R4-19-203, whether on an interim or permanent basis.

I.        A nursing program shall develop and implement a written plan for the systematic evaluation of the total program that is based on program and student learning outcomes and that incorpo- rates continuous improvement based on the evaluative data. The plan shall include measurable outcome criteria, logical methodology, frequency of evaluation, assignment of respon- sibility, actual outcomes and actions taken. The  following areas shall be evaluated:

1.        Internal structure of the program, its relationship to the parent institution, and compatibility of program policies and procedures with those of the parent institution;

2.        Mission and goals;

3.        Curriculum;

4.        Education facilities, resources, and student support ser- vices;

5.        Clinical resources;

6.        Student achievement of program educational outcomes;

7.        Graduation and attrition for each admission cohort including at a minimum:

a.         Number and percent of students who left the pro- gram;

b.        Number and percent of students who are out of sequence in the program; and

c.         Number and percent of students who graduated within 100%, 150% or greater than 150% of time allotted in the curriculum plan.

8.        Graduate performance on the licensing examination;

9.        Faculty performance; and

10.     Protection of patient safety including but not limited to:

a.         Student and faculty policies regarding supervision of students, practicing within scope and student safe practice;

b.        The integration of safety concepts within the curric- ulum;

c.         The application of safety concepts in the clinical set- ting; and

d.        Policies made under R4-19-203(C)(6).

J.        The parent institution shall provide adequate fiscal, human, physical, and learning resources to support program processes and outcomes necessary for compliance with this Article.

K.      The parent institution shall provide adequate resources to recruit, employ, and retain sufficient numbers of qualified fac- ulty members to meet program and student learning outcomes and the requirements of this Article.

L.       The parent institution shall notify the Board of a vacancy, pending vacancy, or leave of absence greater than 30 days in the position of nursing program administrator within 15 days of the program's awareness of the vacancy, pending vacancy, or leave of absence and do the following:

1.        Appoint an interim or permanent administrator who meets the requirements of R4-19-203(A) within 15 days of the effective date of the vacancy or absence, and

2.        Notify the Board of the appointment of an interim or per- manent administrator within 15 days of appointment and provide a copy of the administrator's credentials to the Board.

M.     A parent institution shall notify the Board within 15 days of any change or pending change in institutional accreditation status or reporting requirements.

N.      Prior to final approval for new nursing programs and by July 31, 2015 for existing programs, all RN nursing programs offering less than a bachelor’s degree in nursing shall have a minimum of one articulation agreement with a  Board approved and nationally accredited baccalaureate or higher nursing program that includes recognition of prior learning in nursing and recognition of foundational courses.

Historical Note

Former Section I, Part I; Amended effective January 20, 1975 (Supp. 75-1). Former Section R4-19-11 repealed, new Section R4-19-11 adopted effective February 20, 1980 (Supp. 80-1). Amended effective July 16, 1984 (Supp. 84-4). Former Section R4-19-11 renumbered as Section R4-19-201 (Supp. 86-1). Section repealed; new Section adopted effective July 19, 1995 (Supp. 95-3). Amended by final rulemaking at 7 A.A.R. 5349, effective November 8, 2001 (Supp. 01-4). Amended by final

rulemaking at 11 A.A.R. 451, effective March 7, 2005

(05-1). Amended by final rulemaking at 19 A.A.R. 1419,

effective July 6, 2013 (Supp. 13-2).