National Continued Competency Program (NCCP)
**What is National Continued Competency Program (NCCP)?
The National Continued Competency Program has three overarching requirements:
1. NATIONAL Continued Competency Requirements (NCCR)
2. LOCAL Continued Competency Requirements (LCCR)
3. INDIVIDUAL Continued Competency Requirements (ICCR)
The required hours of education vary at each level of National EMS Certification level based upon the complexity of maintenance of continued competency, the invasiveness of the care provided, and the depth and breadth of the knowledge base.
| Provider Level | NREMT Requirements |
|---|---|
| Paramedic | 60 Hours in a 2 year cycle ~30 Hours National (10 can be Distributive) ~15 Hours Local/State (10 can be Distributive) ~15 Hours Individual (15 can be Distributive) Skills Verification |
| CRT/I-99 | 72 Hours in a 2 year cycle ~36 Hours National (10 can be Distributive) ~36 Hours Additional (18 can be Distributive) Skills Verification |
| EMT | 40 Hours in a 2 year cycle ~20 Hours National (7 can be Distributive) ~10 Hours National (7 can be Distributive) ~10 Hours National (10 can be Distributive) Skills Verification |
| EMR | 16 Hours in a 2 year cycle ~8 Hours National (3 can be Distributive) ~4 Hours National (3 can be Distributive) ~4 Hours National (4 can be Distributive) Skills Verification |
**What are the NCCR?
The National Continued Competency Requirements (NCCR) replace the material currently taught in the traditional DOT refresher and represent 50% of the overall requirements necessary to renew National EMS Certification. Topics included in the National Continued Competency Requirements are updated every four years based upon input obtained from national EMS stakeholders. Topics chosen are informed by:
* Evidenced-based medicine
* Any changes in the National EMS Scope of Practice Model
* Science-based position papers that affect EMS patient care
* Patient care tasks that have low frequency yet high criticality
* Peer-reviewed articles that improve knowledge to deliver patient care
Topics identified are then approved for inclusion into the National Continued Competency Program by the NREMT Board of Directors Continued Competency Committee. An overview of the current NCCR may be found here . Registrants may use a course only once toward the total number of hours required in each topic. Individuals may complete up to 1/3 of the NCCR as Distributive Education (DE; i.e., CAPCE Designation F3**, video review, directed studies, etc.). The maximum number of DE hours allowed for each level of certification for the national component can be below. The total number of DE hours allowed for the NCCR will be decided by the NREMT’s Continued Competency Committee and will be published with each change to the component topics.
-NREMR: 3 hours
-NREMT: 7 hours
-NRAEMT: 8 hours
-NRP: 10 hours
**NOTE: CAPCE uses the F3 designation for distributive education. Other CAPCE designations F1 (one-time events), F2 (multiple-event activities), and F5 (Virtual Instructor Led Training-VILT) are not classified as distributive education.
**What are the LCCR?
The Local Continued Competency Requirements (LCCR) are developed and delivered at the local EMS level and represent 25% of the necessary requirements for all provider levels. The LCCR topics may be chosen by State EMS Offices, EMS region directors (where applicable), and agency-level administrators (for example Medical Directors and Training Officers). Mechanisms that can be used to choose local topics include, but are not limited to: * Changes in local protocols
* Tasks that require remediation based upon a quality assurance system
* National EMS Information Systems (NEMSIS)
Individuals may complete up to 2/3 of the LCCR as Distributive Education (DE; i.e., CAPCE Designation F3**, video review, directed studies, etc.) The maximum number of DE hours allowed for each level of certification are:
-NREMR: 3 hours
-NREMT: 7 hours
-NRAEMT: 8 hours
-NRP: 10 hours
**What are the ICCR?
The Individual Continued Competency Requirements (ICCR) represent 25% of the required continuing education. To satisfy these requirements, an individual may select any EMS-related education. There are no limitations on the number of hours in a specific topic, however, an individual may not use the same course more than once in a registration cycle. Individuals may complete all of the ICCR as Distributive Education (DE; i.e., CAPCE Designation F3**, video review, directed studies, etc.). The maximum number of DE hours allowed for each level of certification are:
-NREMR: 4 hours
-NREMT: 10 hours
-NRAEMT: 12.5 hours
-NRP: 15 hours
**How many total hours do I need for the certification level I am trying to renew?
1. Paramedic
2. EMR
3. EMT
4. AEMT
**If I take UMBC’s Paramedic Refresher Course, what hours am I getting?
You will be receiving 30 hours of CEUs which will fulfill the National Continued Competency Requirements (NCCR) for National Registered Paramedic (NRP). The 2 additional hours you are receiving may be applied to either your LCCR or ICCR required renewal hours.
**After I take UMBC’s Paramedic Refresher course, what else do I need to do to renew?
You will need to complete the remainder of the Local Continue Competency Requirements (LCCR) and Individual Continued Competency Requirements (ICCR).
**Is UMBC offering LCCR and ICCR continuing education?
YES, you can still use ACLS, ITLS and PALS for continuing education. Hour for hour credit can be applied for standardize courses. Our schedule of upcoming courses can be found here.
**How can I get the rest of the hours that I need to renew?
The following are maximum hours per course that can be applied towards the new National Continued Competency Program (NCCR, LCCR and ICCR):
-Hour-for-hour credit can be applied for standardized courses (including, but not limited to, ABLS, ACLS, AMLS, EMPACT, EPC, ITLS, PHTLS, PALS, PEPP, etc.)
– Credit can be applied for college courses that relate to your role as an EMS professional (1 college credit = 8 hours of continuing education). Examples include, but not limited to, anatomy, physiology, biology, chemistry, pharmacology, psychology, sociology, statistics, etc.
– Hours from the following courses can be applied hour-for-hour with no maximum: Advanced Trauma Life Support, EMS Course Instruction, and Wilderness EMS Training.
The following CANNOT be applied towards the new National Continued Competency Program (NCCR, LCCR and ICCR):
-Performance of duty or volunteer time with agencies
-Clinical rotations
-Instructor methodology courses
-Management/leadership courses
-Preceptor hours
-Serving as a skills examiner
NOTE: Course hours may be split between two or more topic areas of the NCCR or between components (NCCR, LCCR and ICCR). Registrants may use a course only once toward the total number of hours required in the NCCR. Local (LCCR) hours are defined by the Medical Director/Training Officer, the State, or both. There are no limitations on the number of hours in a specific topic are for the ICCR, however, registrants may not use the same course more than once in a registration cycle. Excess hours from a course can be carried over to another requirement area. For example, if an eight hour class meets the requirements for use in 6 hours of the NCCR the remaining 2 hours can be used to satisfy hour requirements of the LCCR or ICCR.