(A) There is created the State Board of Nursing composed of eleven members. Two must be licensed practical nurses from the State at large, and two must be lay members from the State at large. Seven must be registered nurses, each representing one congressional district, and at least one must be employed in a hospital setting and at least one must be licensed as an advanced practice registered nurse. When appointing members to the board, consideration should be given to including a diverse representation of principal areas of nursing including, but not limited to, hospital, acute care, advanced practice, community health, and nursing education. Registered nurse and licensed practical nurse members must be licensed in South Carolina, must be employed in nursing, must have at least three years of practice in their respective professions immediately preceding their appointment, and shall reside in the district they represent. Lay members must not be licensed or employed as a health care provider but shall represent the public at large as a consumer of nurse services. No member may serve as an officer of a professional health related state association. The chairman or designee of the State Board of Medical Examiners shall serve as an advisory nonvoting member to the board to provide consultation on matters requested by the Board of Nursing.

(B) Members shall serve terms of four years and until their successors are appointed and qualify. Board members must be appointed by the Governor with the advice and consent of the Senate. An individual, group, or association may nominate qualified persons and submit them to the Governor for consideration. Vacancies must be filled for the unexpired portion of a term by appointment of the Governor.

(C) The Governor may remove members pursuant to Section 1-3-240(C) or members who have been guilty of continued neglect of their duties or members who are found to be incompetent, unprofessional, or dishonorable. No members may be removed without first giving them the opportunity to refute the charges filed against them. The member must be given copies of the charges at the time they are filed.

(D) A board member, or person authorized and approved by the board, engaged in business for the board may receive for board service the usual per diem, mileage, and subsistence as provided by law. These expenses must be paid from the fees received by the board under this chapter.

(E) The board may have and use an official seal bearing the words: "State Board of Nursing for South Carolina". The board may promulgate regulations as it considers necessary for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this chapter.

(F) The board shall meet at least quarterly for the purpose of transacting business. A majority of the members of the board constitutes a quorum; however, if there is a vacancy on the board, a majority of the members serving constitutes a quorum. A board member is required to attend meetings or to provide proper notice and justification of inability to do so. Unexcused absences from meetings may result in removal from the board as provided in Section 1-3-245.

(G) A chairman, a vice chairman, and a secretary comprise the officers of the board. The election of the chairman must be from the registered nurse members of the board, and the vice chairman and secretary must be elected from the members. Officers shall serve terms of one year and until their successors are elected. The administrator shall certify to the Governor the names of the officers elected for regular and unexpired terms.

(H) The Chairman of the State Board of Nursing, or the chairman's designee, shall serve as an advisory nonvoting member of the State Board of Medical Examiners to provide consultation on matters requested by the State Board of Medical Examiners. The Board of Medical Examiners shall send written notice at least ten days before meetings that the Board of Medical Examiners wants the chairman or designee of the State Board of Nursing to attend. The Chairman of the State Board of Nursing, or the chairman's designee, and the State Board of Medical Examiners shall meet at least twice a year and more often as necessary.

(I) In addition to the powers and duties enumerated in Section 40-1-70, the board may:

(1) publish advisory opinions and position statements relating to nursing practice procedures or policies authorized or acquiesced to by any agency, facility, institution, or other organization that employs persons authorized to practice under this chapter to comply with acceptable standards of nursing practice;

(2) develop minimum standards for continued competency of licensees continuing in or returning to practice;

(3) conduct surveys of educational enrollments and licensure and report to the public;

(4) conduct investigations and hearings concerning alleged violations of this chapter;

(5) develop minimum standards for nursing education programs;

(6) approve nursing education programs that meet the prescribed standards;

(7) deny or withdraw approval or limit new student admissions of nursing education programs that fail to meet the prescribed standards;

(8) use minimum standards as a basis for evaluating safe and effective nursing practice;

(9) examine, license, and renew the authorizations to practice of qualified applicants;

(10) join organizations that develop and regulate the national nursing licensure examinations and promote the improvement of the practice of nursing for the protection of the public;

(11) collect any information the board considers necessary, including social security numbers or alien identification numbers, in order to report disciplinary actions to national databanks of disciplinary information;

(12) establish guidelines to assist employers of nurses when errors in nursing practice can be handled through corrective action in the employment setting.

HISTORY: 2004 Act No. 225, Section 1; 2012 Act No. 222, Section 5, eff June 7, 2012.

Editor's Note

Prior Laws:1942 Code Section 5224; 1935 (39) 173; 1947 (45) 579; 1952 Code Section 56-961; 1959 (51) 307; 1962 Code Section 56-961; 1974 (58) 1943; 1975 (59) 563; 1981 Act No. 89, Sections 2, 3, 5; 1990 Act No. 513, Section 1; 1976 Code Section 40-33-210.

2012 Act No. 222, Section 15, provides as follows:

"SECTION 15. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, any person elected or appointed to serve, or serving, as a member of any board, commission, or committee to represent a congressional district, whose residency is transferred to another district by a change in the composition of the district, may serve, or continue to serve, the term of office for which he was elected or appointed; however, the appointing or electing authority shall appoint or elect an additional member on that board, commission, or committee from the district which loses a resident member on it as a result of the transfer to serve until the term of the transferred member expires. When a vacancy occurs in the district to which a member has been transferred, the vacancy must not be filled until the full term of the transferred member expires."

Effect of Amendment

The 2012 amendment rewrote subsection (A) and removed subsection (I)(13) relating to fee schedule regulations.