As of October 31, 2010 for the first time, registered nurses licensed in Pennsylvania are required to earn continuing education to renew their licenses. If you are a licensee in Pennsylvania, I hope you already know this, but just in case, I have a few tips for nurses to help stay on top of licensure changes.
 
Keep up with the latest news in your state by reading your state newsletter or checking the state board of nursing website from time to time. Lippincott's NursingCenter State-by-State Guide to RN License Renewal Requirements located in Professional Resources is an excellent reference for finding your state website, contact information, and CE requirements.
 
If you must earn CE for license renewal, get organized and avoid waiting until the last few months. Make a plan to earn the credit over the license period to allow you to spread out the costs and to stay current in practice and treatment changes over time.
 
You'd be surprised how many nurses call Lippincott Williams & Wilkins to request replacement certificates in the months before their licenses expire. It may seem easy to recommend that nurses save certificates in a file folder, but remember to keep track of your records when you change jobs or move to a different location. You may also want to store your records electronically by scanning and saving certificate on disc.
 
In her editorial in the January 2010 issue of Nursing2010 Critical Care, Anne Marie Palatnik, RN, MSN, ANP-C also suggested that nurses keep copies of the course materials or conference brochures. Some states require specific topics and the title of the program may not provide enough detail. If you attend a conference, the certificate may not list the titles of sessions that you attended. 
 
When you complete your license renewal paperwork, do not send your certificates. You will only be asked to answer a question about earning the required contact hours or filling out a form listing the CE activities you competed. Then a small percentage of licensees are selected by the state board of nursing for an audit. If you are one of the chosen nurses, you will have to produce copies of the certificates, but never send the originals.
 
Awareness, planning, and record-keeping are keys to maintenance of your most valuable asset as a nurse, your professional license.