Kentucky Nursing Continuing Education & Caregiver Training
Kentucky RNs and LPNs generally complete 14 contact hours of nursing continuing education each year during the November 1 through October 31 earning period, plus a one-time, one-contact-hour course on Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia. Kentucky also permits several alternative methods of meeting the annual competency requirement, including seven contact hours combined with a qualifying employment evaluation.
Kentucky aides and direct-care workers have their own training requirements. State Registered Nurse Aides employed by nursing facilities complete 12 hours of staff-development training each year, and home health aides complete 12 hours of in-service training every 12 months. Direct-care workers at home health agencies, personal services agencies, and assisted living communities who serve individuals with Alzheimer's disease or another dementia must also complete six hours of initial dementia training before providing those services and three hours of dementia training annually thereafter, using a curriculum accepted by the Kentucky Office of Dementia Services.
C-E-U.com is approved by the Florida Board of Nursing as Continuing Education Provider #50-47308. Kentucky accepts nursing CE from providers approved by another state board of nursing, allowing Kentucky RNs and LPNs to complete qualifying self-paced courses through C-E-U.com, including the one-time dementia course.
C-E-U.com also offers practical in-service and professional-development courses for Kentucky nurse aides, home health aides, personal care workers, and other direct-care professionals. Our Kentucky-specific 6-hour initial and 3-hour annual dementia courses are in development and will not be advertised as meeting the state requirement until the curriculum is accepted by the Kentucky Office of Dementia Services. Employers remain responsible for confirming which courses they accept.
Kentucky CE Requirements at a Glance
| RN | LPN | SRNA | HHA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Required Hours | 14 CE contact hours annually | 14 CE contact hours annually | 12 hours of annual staff-development training when employed by a nursing facility | 12 hours of in-service training each 12-month period |
| Requirement Period | November 1–October 31 | November 1–October 31 | Annually during covered employment | Every 12 months |
| Governing Authority | Kentucky Board of Nursing | Kentucky Board of Nursing | Kentucky Board of Nursing / Kentucky CHFS / CMS | Kentucky CHFS / CMS |
| Required Subjects | One-time dementia CE for all nurses; suicide prevention, domestic violence, pediatric abusive head trauma, and other topics may apply based on education or licensure history | One-time dementia CE for all nurses; suicide prevention, domestic violence, pediatric abusive head trauma, and infusion-therapy education may apply | Competency-based topics, including dementia management and abuse prevention | Aide duties, competency, patient safety, infection prevention, and assigned home-care responsibilities |
| Alzheimer’s / Dementia Training | One-time 1-hour dementia CE, due by October 31, 2027 (new licensees: within 3 years of licensure) | One-time 1-hour dementia CE, due by October 31, 2027 (new licensees: within 3 years of licensure) | Dementia management included in required annual staff-development topics | 6-hour initial + 3-hour annual dementia training when serving individuals with dementia symptoms (state-accepted curriculum) |
| Reporting / Records | Nurse retains CE records for 5 years; audit documents are submitted through the KBN Nurse Portal | Nurse retains CE records for 5 years; audit documents are submitted through the KBN Nurse Portal | Employing facility maintains training records | Employing agency maintains training and competency records |
Continuing Education for Kentucky (KY) RNs and LPNs — 14 Contact Hours
Kentucky RNs and LPNs generally complete 14 contact hours of nursing continuing education during each annual earning period from November 1 through October 31. Nurses must also complete any one-time content-specific requirements that apply based on their education, initial licensure date, or method of licensure.
General Elective Continuing Education Courses
Explore self-paced nursing courses covering patient safety, infection prevention, documentation, communication, ethics, dementia care, legal responsibilities, and other topics relevant to professional nursing practice.
C-E-U.com is approved by the Florida Board of Nursing as Continuing Education Provider #50-47308, and Kentucky accepts nursing CE from providers approved by another state board of nursing. Completion certificates are available immediately after reviewing the course materials and successfully completing a simple 10-question quiz.
Kentucky One-Time Content-Specific CE Requirements
All Kentucky nurses licensed as of July 15, 2024 must complete a one-time 1-hour continuing-education course on Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia by October 31, 2027. Nurses licensed after that date must complete the course within three years of initial licensure. Kentucky accepts this training from KBN-approved providers, providers approved by another state board of nursing, and certain nationally accredited nursing organizations.
Depending on education and licensure history, other one-time requirements may also apply: suicide prevention (2 contact hours), domestic violence (3 contact hours), and pediatric abusive head trauma (1.5 contact hours). These hours may count toward the annual 14-hour requirement when completed during the applicable earning period.
Kentucky (KY) SRNA and Home Health Aide In-Service Training
Kentucky nursing facilities must provide at least 12 hours of ongoing staff-development training each year to each employed State Registered Nurse Aide. Home health aides working for Medicare-certified home health agencies generally complete at least 12 hours of in-service training during each 12-month period.
SRNA and HHA 12-Hour Annual In-Service Courses
Explore self-paced courses covering infection prevention, resident and patient safety, documentation, communication, abuse and neglect prevention, dementia care, emergency preparedness, and professional responsibility. C-E-U.com courses are designed to support annual aide education. The employing facility or agency remains responsible for accepting the courses, identifying additional competency-based training needs, supervising training when required, and maintaining documentation.
Kentucky 6-Hour Initial Dementia Training — In Development
Kentucky home health aides, personal services agency staff, and assisted living direct-care workers must complete at least six hours of dementia training before serving individuals exhibiting symptoms of Alzheimer's disease or another dementia. The training must use a curriculum accepted through the Kentucky Office of Dementia Services curriculum-review process. C-E-U.com's Kentucky 6-hour initial course is in development and will be submitted for that review; it will not be identified as meeting the requirement until acceptance is obtained.
Kentucky 3-Hour Annual Dementia Training — In Development
After completing initial training, covered direct-care workers must complete at least three hours of dementia training each year. C-E-U.com's Kentucky 3-hour annual course is in development alongside the initial course and will follow the same state review. In the meantime, C-E-U.com's general dementia-care courses may support employer in-service hours where the employer accepts them, but they do not satisfy the Kentucky-specific requirement.
Kentucky Healthcare Resources and References
Kentucky Board of Nursing
Official information about Kentucky RN and LPN licensing, renewal, continuing education, scope of practice, credential verification, and Board updates.Kentucky RN and LPN Continuing Education Requirements
Explains Kentucky’s annual continuing-education options, earning period, accepted providers, certificate requirements, and five-year record-retention requirement.Kentucky Content-Specific Continuing Education Requirements
Provides information about Kentucky’s one-time or conditional nursing topics, including dementia, suicide prevention, domestic violence, pediatric abusive head trauma, and other applicable education.Kentucky Nursing License Renewal
Provides renewal dates, application instructions, deadlines, fees, and information about completing annual continuing education.Kentucky Nursing CE Audit
Explains how nurses are selected for an audit, what certificate information is required, how documentation is submitted, and how long records must be retained.Kentucky Nursing Laws and Regulations
Provides access to Kentucky Revised Statutes Chapter 314 and Kentucky Administrative Regulations Title 201, Chapter 20 governing nursing practice and licensure.Kentucky State Registered Nurse Aide Registry
Official information about Kentucky State Registered Nurse Aide certification, registry status, applications, verification, renewal, and professional requirements.Kentucky SRNA Renewal
Explains how Kentucky nurse aides renew active registry status and the employment documentation needed for renewal.Kentucky Nurse Aide Training
Provides information about Kentucky nurse aide training, competency evaluation, reimbursement, approved programs, and Medicaid requirements.907 KAR 1:450 — Nurse Aide Training and Registry
Establishes Kentucky nurse aide training, competency examination, registry, and annual staff-development requirements.Kentucky Office of Dementia Services
Provides dementia education resources and information about state review and approval of dementia-training curricula for home health agencies, personal services agencies, and assisted living communities.Kentucky Health Care Facilities and Regulations
Provides facility directories, licensing resources, regulations, inspection information, and forms for Kentucky healthcare and long-term-care providers.Kentucky Division of Health Care
Oversees licensing, certification, inspection, and regulatory compliance for Kentucky healthcare facilities and agencies.Kentucky Medicaid Home Health Services
Provides Kentucky Medicaid enrollment, coverage, licensing, and service information for home health agencies and home health services.42 CFR § 483.95 — Training Requirements
Federal training standards for nurse aides working in Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing facilities, including annual in-service education.42 CFR § 484.80 — Home Health Aide Services
Federal requirements for home health aide qualifications, competency evaluation, supervision, and annual in-service training.
Kentucky Continuing Education and Caregiver Training FAQs
Kentucky RNs and LPNs generally complete 14 contact hours of approved nursing continuing education each year. The annual CE earning period runs from November 1 through October 31.
Yes. One option allows a nurse to complete seven contact hours of approved nursing CE together with a satisfactory employment evaluation covering at least six months of the annual earning period.
Kentucky also recognizes certain alternatives, including qualifying national nursing certification, post-licensure academic nursing courses, preceptorship, publication of a nursing article, presentation of an approved nursing CE course, and completion of a nursing research project.
All Kentucky nurses must complete a one-time, one-contact-hour course addressing Alzheimer’s disease or another form of dementia.
Depending on where and when the nurse completed their nursing education, additional one-time requirements may include:
- Two contact hours of suicide-prevention education
- Three contact hours addressing domestic violence
- One and one-half contact hours addressing pediatric abusive head trauma
- Qualifying infusion-therapy education for certain LPNs who perform infusion therapy
Nurses should review their individual education and licensure history to determine which one-time requirements apply.
Nurses who were actively licensed on July 15, 2024, must complete the one-hour dementia requirement by October 31, 2027.
Nurses initially licensed after July 15, 2024, must complete the requirement within three years of initial licensure. Once completed, the course does not need to be repeated.
Yes. Kentucky accepts nursing continuing education offered by providers approved by another state board of nursing. C-E-U.com is approved by the Florida Board of Nursing as Continuing Education Provider #50-47308.
Courses must be relevant to nursing practice and provide a compliant certificate showing the learner, course, completion date, contact hours, provider information, and the authority approving the provider.
C-E-U.com provides the learner with a completion certificate but does not submit routine course completions directly to the Kentucky Board of Nursing.
Kentucky nurses should maintain their own documentation. Nurses may optionally upload certificates to the KBN Nurse Portal for storage. If selected for an audit, the nurse must submit the required documents through the Nurse Portal by the deadline stated in the audit notice.
The Kentucky Board of Nursing no longer uses CE Broker to receive documents for its CE audits. Nurses may continue using CE Broker or another service for personal record storage, but audit documentation must be submitted through the KBN Nurse Portal.
Kentucky nurses must retain their continuing-education documentation for at least five years. Records do not ordinarily need to be submitted during routine renewal but must be available if the nurse is selected for an audit.
Kentucky nursing licenses must be renewed by midnight Eastern Time on October 31. If the license is not renewed by the deadline, it lapses, and the nurse may not practice until the license has been reinstated.
Reinstatement requirements vary based on how long the license has been lapsed and may include an application, fees, proof of continuing competency, and additional CE hours.
C-E-U.com completion certificates are available immediately after the learner reviews the required course materials and successfully completes a simple 10-question quiz. Each certificate identifies the learner, course title, completion date, contact hours awarded, provider information, and C-E-U.com’s Florida Board of Nursing provider approval.
Covered direct-care staff working through Kentucky personal services agencies, home health agencies, and assisted living communities must complete dementia-specific training using a curriculum approved by the Kentucky Office of Dementia Services.
The requirement generally includes six hours of initial dementia training and three hours of annual training thereafter. C-E-U.com’s Kentucky-specific dementia training is currently in development and will not be identified as meeting this requirement until the curriculum receives the required state approval.
C-E-U.com’s Kentucky-specific caregiver dementia training is currently in development. It will not be advertised as meeting the Kentucky requirement until the curriculum has been reviewed and approved by the Kentucky Office of Dementia Services.
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