TOTA District Continuing Education Approval Program

The TOTA Approved Provider Program authorizes continuing education providers to issue TOTA continuing education (CE) hours. The TOTA District APP assures that continuing education courses offered by Districts are relevant to OT practitioners in the state of Texas and corresponds with criteria for continuing education established by the Texas Board of Occupational Therapy Examiners (TBOTE).  Applications will be reviewed by at least 2 members of the TOTA's CE review committee to assure quality of the course offering and it meets the TBOTE CE criteria.

The District Chair for your TOTA District must submit the course for approval.  Who is my District Chair?


Download Application Instructions
District CE Application

 

Application Instructions

Important Scheduling Info

  • Before submitting the course, the District Chair must check the master calendar (About Us > Board of Directors > Board Admin) to ensure there are no schedule conflicts.  One CE event per day.
  • Submit course at least 4 weeks in advance.
  • Presentation Slides and Handouts are due one week before the event: [email protected]

Hosting Options

Courses can be offered in-person, via Zoom, or a hybrid option. 

  • In-Person courses will use an RSVP form that will be included in the approval email.
  • Courses via Zoom must use the TOTA Zoom link and must be recorded.  The Zoom Link will be provided in the approval emailOn the day of the course, the district chair or the district education chair will open the course via zoom and ensure it is recorded.
  • Certificates for all attendees, whether in-person or virtual, are issued through the TOTA LMS.

Counting Contact Hours

  • Do not count breaks, welcome, networking, testing time, or expo time.
  • Courses are approved in 30-minute increments.
  • Your course must run for the full duration of its approved time.  For example, if one hour is approved, the course must last one full hour.

Cost

  • FREE to current TOTA members
  • Non-Member OT/OTA $20
  • Non-Member Student $10
Per TOTA policy, persons who are not members of TOTA shall not be admitted to any continuing education activity without prepayment.

 

Content

Content must be considered acceptable under TBOTE rules:

Acceptable Activities ensure the health, safety, and welfare of the public and directly concern the maintenance or enhancement of knowledge and proficiencies relevant to occupational therapy practice or the pedagogy, education, ethics, or theory development of occupational therapy.  This includes content about:

  • Occupational therapy practice as defined in TBOTE Rule §362.1
  • Health conditions treated by occupational therapy
  • Ethical or regulatory matters in occupational therapy
  • Occupational therapy documentation or reimbursement for occupational therapy services

Unacceptable Activities. Activities may not be unacceptable activities. Content not eligible for continuing education includes but is not limited to:

(A) Any non-instructional time frames such as breaks, meals, introductions, and pre/post testing.
(B) Business meetings.
(C) Exhibit hall attendance.
(D) Activities that provide information about the work setting’s philosophy, policies, or procedures or educate employees about a specific work setting.
(E) Activities that concern business development, general professional behaviors/standards, or customer service. 
(F) Activities that concern the self-promotion of the provider’s or licensee’s programs, products, or services.
(G) Activities that concern general topics such as social work; defensive driving; water safety; team building; Graduate Record Examinations (GRE)®, Graduate Management Admissions Test ™(GMAT), and Medical College Admission Test® (MCAT) preparation; general foreign languages; disposal of hazardous waste; patient privacy/rights or abuse of patients; cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR); First Aid; Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA); and Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

 

What if the course content falls under Unacceptable Activities?  You can still offer it as a Professional Development course.  Although licensees cannot earn continuing ed hours toward license renewal with a Professional Development course, these courses may still provide valuable information for practitioners. 

If Approved

  • District Chair ensures they can access the Zoom account and link
  • District Chair or Presenter must email slides and handouts to [email protected] one week before course.
  • TOTA will add the course to the Events Calendar and create a registration link.
  • Request Social Media Posting

Day of Event

Questions? Contact [email protected]