[{"_1":2,"_88":-5,"_89":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6456207,"mediaKeyId","5692068-b1da9e4091ef763b0f10deada23e998a","parentId",5692068,"title","IEC debate over switching from quarterly to six meetings in 2026 ends with split vote and unclear final status","audioSeconds",821,"startMs",3499000,"endMs",4320000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5692068-b1da9e4091ef763b0f10deada23e998a&start=3499&end=4320","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5692068-b1da9e4091ef763b0f10deada23e998a/thumbnail_3499000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6456207/California/IEC-debate-over-switching-from-quarterly-to-six-meetings-in-2026-ends-with-split-vote-and-unclear-final-status","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6456207-8637c95ddcae719989d9e6a52bac111d/orig.mp4?Expires=1773615852&Signature=n9kIHdtEW5zTdHrbVDsp2DxVDxbsexRaceAVtizN0WelfdWl8iktDHhNrr0r1nDNblDL3MTCINtEY1AmdXeK-1Msuhv1mE2~OR9n0VoXsBNjXK47ebA0GDoNuhTLle-kO2gFVUkMlTkl9AjAFX829TWEK9AlKCRKybh~aIE6Kvze8QdBfYBSNxWSxwvFxHGoiwLACOf8mYN~fZ0bfJthZ2y5rXFl05YB-TO-3xiUrz9Uk7IP9C7uaTg77s-uizL7Q1Ch2jBMh6nQgORBv3usbI~jqkBTLTXqWCVI04-392-tkxhQBn7Krhfk1uZNpk9ltv8B3pyVRb4BE7C5PULoWg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Respiratory Care Board of California","date","2025-08-27T21:55:24Z","article","The Intervention Evaluation Committee (IEC) met Aug. 26 to consider a staff proposal to increase the IEC meeting schedule in 2026 from four to six meetings to reduce participant delays and accommodate additional IECs and members.

Staff said the proposed schedule would hold six meetings—one every other month—so committees could process participants more quickly and reduce cancellations that force participants to wait months for review. “When we have an IEC that cancels because of quorum issues, we then have a large number of participants that will need to be found another home and cannot wait another 3 months,” staff said.

Committee members raised practical concerns about member availability and the risk of repeated absences triggering resignation requests from their employers. Members also sought clarification about Bagley‑Keene open‑meeting requirements for an in‑person quorum; staff said at least a majority of members (three members) plus one staff person must be present at the in‑person location to meet the law.

A motion to adopt the proposed 2026 IEC schedule was moved by Laura Thomas and seconded by Dr. Osazuwa Omedy. The roll‑call vote was inconsistent in the meeting record: at one point the clerk announced a 3–1 result that the motion carried; later the clerk announced “With 2 yeses and 2 nos, the motion does not carry.” After further discussion the committee did not record a final, clarified adoption on the public record and moved into closed session.

Why it matters: increasing the number of meetings is intended to reduce lags that affect participants’ livelihoods and to accommodate new IEC recruitment, but members warned that more meetings could increase scheduling burdens for volunteers and risk quorum problems if members routinely miss meetings.

Ending: Staff said the schedule can be revisited at a future meeting and offered to work with committee members individually to address scheduling conflicts.

","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","California Board of Registered Nursing - Intervention Evaluation Committee Meeting - August 26, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","The Intervention Evaluation Committee discussed and voted on a proposed 2026 meeting schedule to increase IEC meetings from quarterly to six times a year. Roll‑call voting produced conflicting tallies in the record and the committee left the schedule unresolved for further consideration.","taxTitle","Respiratory Care Board of California, Boards and Commissions, Executive, California","taxId",76751,"location","California","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6456212,"Executive officer tells IEC board motion limits requiring patient care or narcotics access for program completion",2400,720000,3120000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5692068-b1da9e4091ef763b0f10deada23e998a&start=720&end=3120","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5692068-b1da9e4091ef763b0f10deada23e998a/thumbnail_720000.jpg","/articles/6456212/California/Executive-officer-tells-IEC-board-motion-limits-requiring-patient-care-or-narcotics-access-for-program-completion","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6456212-68fc361db3f64025c7400e2b5fd8f66a/orig.mp4?Expires=1773615852&Signature=ClLhc5VDF9iRii4zoFWU0jJ5k1VioaWiJuHuvlG5PB1ghYcRnWjBvtnP1erc79yKzEbWW2TGqtNedykkaZLK4oE6~rkMGnzsA1bdQ6d-CBx8eS1yv0MTsOlqhf~jA6cSYcWfiAYlh~4TEBu6ur9LAIexDVt~u-3-PE3-f9XHRUV8KBPFWso8~4op43EfWM6WIgwK~qjlFyibTmJKtj4eJvUCnm7BbHJPUjPH5ccBqujoMjgfuUYco4RK9O2rPOi3kQomTqX3QMwGMfoWomP~TJ8-QLkbox8JjKwk1wBCdaWqcQ-RsVNaz1zivmXmh3hMJd56I7x1dY2X7XqmbyogkA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Loretta Melby, executive officer for the Intervention Evaluation Committee, told members on Aug. 26 that the board’s motion from the prior year suspended a blanket requirement that intervention‑program participants be required to work in direct patient care or to pass narcotics as a condition of program completion unless there is additional evidence of a patient‑safety risk.

Melby said the change responds to public concerns and inconsistent messaging from a prior vendor, and that the committee must document evidence whenever it recommends imposing or removing those requirements. “The motion that was put forward by our board in August said to suspend the imposition of the requirement that participants work in direct patient care unless there is an additional evidence of patient safety issues,” Melby said.

The explanation came during an information item on program participation and completion requirements. Melby told the Intervention Evaluation Committee (IEC) that since the board motion took effect the executive office has reviewed 56 IEC recommendations for completion that involved direct patient care or narcotic access. Of those, she said, she upheld 19 recommendations as supported by evidence and returned 31 to IECs for reconsideration because the documentation did not show additional patient‑safety issues or raised questions about how the recommendation was reached.

Why it matters: the IECs review nurses in the board’s alternative‑to‑discipline intervention program and recommend terms for return to practice. Melby emphasized that the board’s authority does not allow a blanket rule requiring narcotics access or direct patient care for all participants; such conditions must be justified by evidence specific to the individual case.

Melby reviewed how the board and the program assess readiness to return to practice. She said the program runs three to five years and relies on clinical evaluations, vendor case managers (currently Premier Health), work‑site monitoring and drug testing. “If they’re showing that they’re working their program, if they’re showing that they’ve got the support and they can continue to be, as much as we can determine, sober or in control their mental health, we have the ability to review them for completion,” Melby said.

Committee members pressed for clarity on what constitutes the “additional evidence of patient safety issues” that would justify requiring direct patient care or narcotics access. Melby said reviewers should examine root causes, treatment engagement, recent program compliance (for example missed calls or a problematic worksite monitor report), and clinical evaluator findings. “You look at root root cause. Right? What is what is the root cause of that? The root cause of that is the addiction,” Melby said, adding that the program’s goal is to give participants the tools to manage a lifelong condition.

Melby also said the board participates in a National Council of State Boards of Nursing study tracking completions and longer‑term recidivism; she said the study is in its final two years and will provide additional evidence about outcomes for participants who complete the program without mandated direct patient care or narcotics access.

Committee members raised concerns that some job roles commonly require narcotics access and asked how the committee can be confident a participant will not later encounter risks if placed in those roles. Melby responded that clinical evaluators, ongoing monitoring and worksite reports are intended to create a controlled, stepped return to practice when appropriate and that participants who successfully complete can re‑enter the program if they later need help.

Melby told IEC members the office will increase training and transparency, record and post IEC open sessions going forward, and continue outreach materials; she provided her contact email, loretta.melby@dca.ca.gov, for follow‑up.

Ending: The IEC did not take a committee vote on changing program standards at this meeting; Melby said staff will continue to present education to IECs and to return cases to committees when documentation is incomplete.

","Loretta Melby, executive officer, reviewed a board motion and evidence standards for the intervention program, saying the board suspended automatic requirements that program participants work in direct patient care or pass narcotics unless additional patient‑safety evidence is presented.","actionData","errors"]

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IEC debate over switching from quarterly to six meetings in 2026 ends with split vote and unclear final status

Executive officer tells IEC board motion limits requiring patient care or narcotics access for program completion