California- 5 years limit for pharmacology

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Aug 1, 2016

Can you ask your program director for guidance? It looks like you will be within the 5 year time frame as long as there's no delay in your application. To practice in CA, you need both NP license and NP furnishing license. The NP furnishing license requires that you have taken a graduate pharmacology course within the last 5 years. Without the furnishing license, you can't prescribe.

http://rn.ca.gov/pdfs/applicants/npf-app.pdf

chesternut02 · Aug 1, 2016

Juan, Thank you so much for your reply.

Now I am taking my program out of CA, and I will go to California after graduation because of my family.

I asked the director of my program, and she said it should be okay but she was not positive for sure; she is not familiar with CA's policy that much. That's why I am so concerned about this.

Also I checked the instruction of CA board, and it indicates that they do not accept the refresher course or CE hours.

"The advancedpharmacology course must be completed at any nationally accredited master's or post-master's level academicNurse Practitioner program. Continuing Education course(s) are not acceptable to meet the Nurse PractitionerFurnishing Number advanced pharmacology course requirement."

I do not want to retake this course again although our school will offer this course this Fall. It is too expensive.

If the CA board does not consider my course still valid, I would have to retake it this Fall. I wrote to CA board, but have not got reply. I called hundreds of times to them, nobody answered the phones.

Advanced Practice Columnist / Guide · Aug 1, 2016

It's not very easy to get in touch with anyone in California (BRN, DMV, etc.). I would just make sure that you can actually sit for the boards in January, get ANCC or AANP to send verification of your certification, and get your transcripts in before May 2017. That's your only chance at this point.

chesternut02 · Aug 1, 2016

Thank you so much for your kind advice, Juan. You are so nice!!! Really appreciate it.

Yeah, that's exactly what I am thinking about it now. I read some posts about the speed of CA board, and found that these applicants had to wait months. That's scary. I am afraid that I send all my documents to them before February, and would have to wait long long time until pass the expiration date of my pharmacology. That would be a disaster.

MiahMSN, MSN, RN · Aug 17, 2016

I am in the exact same boat. Got my MSN may 2012 (in which I took advanced pharmacology fall 2011). I will finish my post masters May 2017. According to the BRN (it took a week of calling to actually get someone), by the time I will apply for my NP license, my pharmacology would be pass the 5 year mark, and thus I would need to retake it. So I am now enrolled in advanced pharmacology....the exact same class at the same school I took it and received an A in 2011 (much cheaper to take it there than my current school).

Also remember, it is not when you completed your MSN program, but when you completed the actual pharmacology class, is when the 5 year timer kicks in.

chesternut02 · Aug 17, 2016

Miah, thank you so much for sharing your experience!!!

I took my Advanced Pharmacology in Spring 2012. My post-master NP program will be done this December, and I am going to take the board exam in January 2017. Technically, it will be 5 years for my pharmacology by the end of May 2017. However, my concern is if the CA board is too slow to review my application, and it would be risky if they delay it to May 2017.

I have decided to repeat this course in my school. It will cost $2400. A lot of money to me, so paiful.

Amabel25 · Sep 19, 2017

What ended up happening? Did they make you retake pharmacology?