Continuing Education Guidelines

The Fairview Rehabilitation Services (FRS) continuing education (CE) budget is centralized in the Clinical Quality (CQ) Department and funds are allocated for internal courses for Fairview Rehabilitation Services and for external course work. 

Internal Fairview Sponsored CE
FRS-sponsored internal coursework is provided as a benefit for all core and casual employees. Internal courses will be provided by FRS based on priorities established and suggestions given from each service/entity. Below are guidelines for internal Fairview sponsored CE:

  • Signing up for a CE does not guarantee time off. Employees must go through the established “staff time off” request process (discuss with supervisor/Director or staffing office).     
    • It is up to the discretion of the director whether or not CE days will be paid for by FRS or if the employee will use their paid time off
  • Casual employees must meet the minimum work requirement to be eligible to attend internal Fairview sponsored CE. If the casual employee does not meet the work requirement, they may pay out of pocket to attend the course. Payment must be made when signing up for the internal      Fairview sponsored CE. Registration will not be processed until payment has been received.
  • Fairview employees who do not have a minimum work requirement within Rehabilitation Services (i.e. work in mental health, will receive a 50% discount on all internal courses and will register as an external participant. Payment must be made when signing up for the internal Fairview sponsored CE. Registration will be processed when payment has been received.

External Course registration process and approval:  See additional information (highlighted below)

  • With director approval, FRS employees in a core benefit eligible position may submit a request to attend an external CE course. 
  • The correct process is for Continuing education department to register and pay for the course. 
  • If employee paid for the course, the employee will need to submit a copy of the brochure/or link to course information, itemized receipt and submit for reimbursement in the out of pocket program as well as fill out electronic CE request form. Will need directors approval. 
  • The director may make partial approval decisions based on their overall entity budget. 
          
  • If an employee cancels from an external course paid by M Health Fairview, the employee will be responsible for reimbursement of 100 percent of costs incurred and any cancellation fees.
  • When determining appropriateness of an external CE, the director considers the following:
    • Clinically applicable
    • Program development/Strategic Growth
    • Specialty area
    • Must not be similar to a Fairview internal CE course
    • Must bring content back to share with employees
    • Two or less external CE courses per employee per year
    • No outstanding amount owed to the CE department due to last minute cancel or no-show of an internal CE course.
    • IT hub CE electronic form filled out and approved by director

Registration process for external courses
No Travel

  • Refer to the CE Website and instructions on how to submit for an external CE request in Service Now.  
  • CE Coordinator will register employee for course and send an email confirmation. If course has already been paid for and employee is seeking reimbursement this must be indicated in the ServiceNow form.

Travel

  • Refer to the CE Website and instructions on how to submit for an external CE request in Service Now. CE department will forward travel      information Travel one if airfare is indicated. Employee can request a specific flight and TravelOne will accommodate this.  

Please note: Outstate/out-of-state travel/hotel will be arranged by the CE department. Lodging cost incurred will be paid by employee and expensed upon return from course. Once the CE Department receives these contracts, employee will be contacted and arrangements will be finalized. You must have filled out all travel information on the ServiceNow form.

Fairview Employee Cancellation Policy

If you cancel an internal CE course, the CE Department must receive notification at least 72 hours prior to course date and check in time or you will incur a $25.00 administrative fee. (Eg: If course taking place on a Saturday at 8 am, CE department must receive cancellation by Wednesday morning at 8 am). 

The fee will be charged in all situations but discretion will be used if the reason is due to a real hardship (death in the family, emergencies, etc.). Directors will be notified of any cancellations within the 72 hour time frame so they are aware.

Resignation/Terminated Employees

  • If employee (Core or Casual)  is signed up for a Fairview Sponsored internal CE at the time of resignation/termination, employee may pay out of pocket to attend the course. Payment must be made immediately upon resignation/termination or the employee will be canceled from the class. If a core employee is staying on as a casual for FRS; the casual therapist will not owe for the Fairview sponsored internal CE.     

The following information applies to employees in a core position as FRS does not fund external course work for casual therapist.  Additional information in regards to external course work and submission process. 

  • If external course work has been funded by Fairview and employee wishes to attend after resignation/voluntary termination, the employee must reimburse FRS 100% of the costs.     
  • If external course work has been funded by Fairview and employee wishes to cancel out of the course, which is held after resignation/termination, the employee must reimburse FRS 100% of the course and all related cancellation fees and travel expense fees.
  • If the employee resigns/terminates employment within three months from the last external CE course attended, the employee must reimburse Fairview for 100 percent of the costs incurred.
  • If the employee resigns/terminates employment between three to six months from the last external CE course, 50 percent of the costs incurred will be reimbursed by the employee.
  • After six months of attending a course, there will be no obligation to FRS.
  • Requests for an exception to the policy will be considered, case-by-case, by the administrative team.
  • Amount owed back can come out of employees last paycheck if requested by the employee.
  • Reimbursed Expenses
    FRS may reimburse employees for some or all expenses. Employee must speak with director and all appropriate expense forms must be filled out prior to the employee incurring expenses. After a course, if expenses were incurred, employee must follow the reimbursement process listed below.
    Reimbursed expenses may include the following:
  • Registration fee
  • For association sponsored course work, FRS will pay the fee that is charged for association members, the employee is responsible for the cost difference if they are not a member of their association (APTA, AOTA, ASHA.....)
  • FRS will pay the early registration fee only if such a  fee is offered; the employee is responsible for the cost difference.
  • CE requests must be received by the Clinical Quality (CQ) Division one month prior to the course. Exceptions will be considered based on director’s discretion. Failure to submit registration request within one month of the course may result in employee being responsible for completing course registration including payment.
  • For courses offered in multiple cities, FRS will reimburse local attendance only unless the director approves otherwise based on business priorities.


Textbooks

Textbooks will be paid by FRS ONLY if required for the course. The textbook will become the property of the employee’s entity if requested by director.


Lodging

FRS makes all lodging reservations if the hotel is approved. The employee will be responsible for paying lodging costs. Must save receipt and submit for reimbursement through the out-of-pocket online program. More detailed information is in the Travel and Entertainment Policy. If you are approved to use your pcard for hotel you must contact the pcard administration to have your card approved for hotel expense.


Ground Transportation

FRS will reimburse transportation expenses (taxi, train, shuttle, etc.) while attending out-of-state courses only.

Airfare

Air travel will be arranged by FRS and must be booked through Travel One Inc. Flights will be booked based on lowest reasonable fare available.

Parking Fees
FRS with director approval may reimburse parking fees while attending out-of-state courses only. Local parking is not covered.

Meals

Meals will be reimbursed when overnight travel is required. An employee will be given a meal allowance not to exceed $59.00 per day including tax and gratuity.

    • If the meeting / conference provide any meals as part of the registration costs, the employee must adjust the daily guideline according to the amounts above.
    • No alcoholic beverages will be reimbursed.
    • Gratuities or tipping is limited to 20% of the charge unless the gratuity is automatically assessed by the establishment/restaurant for larger groups or functions.
    • $59 cannot be spent on one meal.


Original detailed/itemized receipts will be required for ALL expenses, regardless of dollar amount. General credit card receipts do not qualify as a valid receipt. All expenses and itemized receipts must be submitted to your director within 30 days of trip/expense or the employee forfeits reimbursement.

Reimbursed expenses exclude the following:

  • Travel to/from local courses
  • Parking fees for local courses
  • Lodging and Meals if attending local courses (within100 miles of place of work)
  • Car Rental
  • Hotel phone calls (employee will be reimbursed for one personal phone call per day).
  • Fairview does not reimburse for gas on personal vehicles or rental cars. 

Reimbursement Process/OUT OF POCKET
The processes for reimbursement after attending an external course (either paying with your own money or using the P-card process may include one or more of the following:
Out of Pocket Reimbursement (all expenses are paid through the out-of-pocket program – if you are not currently set up, please have director email [email protected] to be set up in the out-of-pocket program).

  • Submit the following to the CE department (711 Kasota avenue SE, Minneapolis, MN 55414 or email/scan items to [email protected]):
    • a detailed itemized list of all expenses
    •  a copy of all of your original receipts
    •  a copy of the original brochure
    • certification of completion/proof of attendance
    • official registration/travel request from IT HUB  

P-Card Reconciliation (all approved expenses that are charged to the P-card must follow the same process)

Once CE department receives above information (for either the OOP program or the P-card reconciliation):

  •  CE department will provide employee the information regarding business unit, operating unit, sub-account number to use when entering the out of pocket expenses online or their pcard. Once the employee receives this information they can enter the out of pocket expenses or reconcile their card and submit original receipts to accounts payable or their director for reimbursement. CE department will also need copies of all receipts and statements. Credit card receipts or copies of checks/credit card statements are not acceptable as a receipt.
        
         **All expenses must be turned in within 30 days of course completion
         **Failure to attend the course,without proper notification, will result in paying back 100% of the costs to FRS and may include loss of CE           benefits, including the ability to attend future CE courses.


International Course Work/Travel
Individuals shall not be reimbursed for seminars, conferences or conventions held outside the 48-contiguous United States or on cruise ships unless authorized by the CEO in advance of the trip and only after review by Fairview’s Tax Department to determine whether the trip qualifies for reimbursement under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Moreover, any such seminar, conference or convention held outside the 48-contiguous United States must be of such a nature to provide a  unique educational learning experience that is directly related to and in furtherance of the active conduct of Fairview’s business. For purposes of this policy, Hawaii, Alaska, Canada, Mexico and cruises are considered “International Travel.”
     
Professional Dues Reimbursement Guidelines

  • 50 percent of annual professional membership fees incurred from state/national organizations may be taken out of department allocations if the following requirements are met:
    • The employee has authorized hours of 40 or more per pay period
    • The employee provides something of value to Fairview as a result of membership sponsorship (value based on directors’ discretion)
    • Need to be actively involved in the organization. 
  • Reimbursement can include national or state chapter dues, however, will not include additional special section dues or other miscellaneous fees
  • If the employee resigns or changes status to less than 40 hours per pay period within six months of reimbursement, the employee will be responsible for 100 percent of full costs incurred and must reimburse Fairview
  • Fees incurred as a result of professional license / certification / registration fees will not be reimbursed.

Specialty Certification
FRS may pay for the cost to obtain certification in an area of specialization pre-approved by the FRS Administrative Team. Full or partial reimbursement will be negotiated based on overall costs necessary. If the employee resigns within one year following the certification examination, the employee will be responsible for 100 percent reimbursement to Fairview of full costs incurred.

FAIRVIEW EMPLOYEE INSTRUCTOR
FRS will pay employees with advanced knowledge, expertise or experience to present an internally- sponsored course. All honorariums will be negotiated with the CE planning specialist/Director based on expertise and experience. Reimbursed expenses exclude the following:

  • Local mileage and parking fees
  • Meals
  • Cost of slides greater than $100.00 (reimbursed slides will become the property of Fairview).
  • Fairview Rehabilitation Services
    Continuing Education
    711 Kasota avenue SE
    Minneapolis, MN 55414
    [email protected]
    Office: 612-672-5607
    FAX:  612-273-7950