N.M. Code R. § 16.19.4.7 – Definitions

A. “A year” begins with the pharmacist’s birth month and ends the last day of the pharmacist’s birth month the following year.
B. “Accredited Provider” An institution, organization or agency that has been recognized by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education, in accord with its policy and procedures, as having demonstrated compliance with the standards which are indicative of the Provider's capability to develop and deliver quality continuing pharmacy education.
C. “Activity” as used in the ACPE criteria for quality and these regulations, the term refers to an individual educational experience or program such as a lecture, home study course, workshop, seminar, symposium, etc.
D. “Alternate supervising physician” means a physician who holds a current unrestricted license, is a cosignatory on the notification of supervision, agrees to act as the supervising physician in the supervising physician’s absence, or expand the “scope of practice or sites of practice” of the pharmacist clinician and is approved by the board.
E. “Board” means the New Mexico board of pharmacy.
F. “Consultation” means communication in person, telephonically, by two-way radio, by e-mail or by other electronic means.
G. “Contact hour” means a unit of measure equivalent to 60 minutes of participation in an approved organized learning experience or activity.
H. “Continuing education unit (CEU)” means ten contact hours of participation or it’s equivalent in an organized continuing education activity sponsored by an accredited provider.
I. “Continuing pharmacy education (CPE)” means a structured education activity offered by an accredited provider, designed or intended to support the continuing development of pharmacies or pharmacy technicians to maintain and enhance their competence. Continuing pharmacy education should promote problem-solving and critical thinking and be applicable to the practice of pharmacy.
J. “Continuing professional development (CPD)” means the responsibility of individual pharmacists for systematic maintenance, development and broadening of knowledge, skills and attitudes, to ensure continuing competence as a professional, throughout their careers.
K. “Criteria for quality” means continuing education provider shall show evidence of adherence to the criteria adopted by the American council on pharmaceutical education as indicative of the ability to provide continuing pharmaceutical education activities; areas include: administrative and organization; budget and resources; teaching staff; educational content management of activity; method of delivery; facilities; evaluation mechanism.
L. “Dangerous drug” means a drug that, because of any potentiality for harmful effect or the methods of its use or the collateral measures necessary to its use, is not safe except under the supervision of a provider licensed by law to direct the use of such drug and the drug prior to dispensing is required by federal law and state law to bear the manufacturer’s legend “Caution: Federal law prohibits dispensing without a prescription;” or “Caution: federal law restricts this drug to use by or on the order of a licensed veterinarian.”; or “Rx only.”
M. “Guidelines or protocol” means a written agreement between a pharmacist clinician or group of pharmacist clinicians and a physician or group of physicians that delegates prescriptive authority.
N. “Initial pharmacist licensure” means the license issued shall be valid for no less than 24 months. The license will expire the last date of his/her birth month that immediately follows the minimum 24 month time period.
O. “Live programs” means CPE activities that provide for direct interaction between faculty and participants and may include lectures, symposia, live teleconferences, workshops, etc.
P. “Monitor dangerous drug therapy” means to review the dangerous drug therapy regimen of patients by a pharmacist clinician for the purpose of evaluating and rendering advice regarding adjustment of the regimen. “Monitor dangerous drug therapy” includes:
1. (1) collecting and reviewing patient dangerous drug histories;
2. (2) measuring and reviewing routine patient vital signs including pulse, temperature, blood pressure and respiration;
3. (3) ordering and evaluating the results of laboratory tests relating to dangerous drug therapy, including blood chemistries and cell counts, controlled substance therapy levels, blood, urine, tissue or other body fluids, culture and sensitivity tests when performed in accordance with guidelines or protocols applicable to the practice setting and;
4. (4) evaluating situations that require the immediate attention of the physician and instituting or modifying treatment procedures when necessary.
Q. “Oversight committee” means a joint committee made up of four members to hear issues regarding pharmacist clinicians’ prescriptive authority activities and supervising physicians’ direction of these activities.
R. “Patient safety” means the prevention of healthcare errors and the elimination or mitigation of patient injury caused by healthcare errors.
S. “Pharmaceutical care” means the provision of drug therapy and other patient care services related to drug therapy intended to achieve definite outcomes that improve a patient’s quality of life, including identifying potential and actual drug-related problems, resolving actual drug-related problems and preventing potential drug-related problems.
T. “Pharmacist” means a person duly licensed by the board to engage in the practice of pharmacy pursuant to the Pharmacy Act, Sections 61-11-1, 61-11-2, 61-11-4 to 61-11-28 NMSA 1978.
U. “Pharmacist clinician” means a pharmacist with additional training required by regulations adopted by the board in consultation with the New Mexico medical board and the New Mexico academy of physician assistants, who exercises prescriptive authority in accordance with guidelines or protocol.
V. “Pharmacist in charge” means a pharmacist who accepts responsibility for the operation of a pharmacy in conformance with all laws and rules pertinent to the practice of pharmacy and the distribution of drugs and who is personally in full and actual charge of the pharmacy and its personnel.
W. “Practice of pharmacy” means continually optimizing medication safety, patient wellness, and quality of services through the effective use of pharmaceutical care and emerging technologies and competency-based and performance-based training. The practice of pharmacy may include:
1. (1) Pharmaceutical dispensing including product selection.
2. (2) specialty pharmacy practice including pharmacists working for licensed pharmaceutical manufacturers or wholesalers;
3. (3) practice of telepharmacy within and across state lines;
4. (4) engaging in health care educational activities;
5. (5) pharmacy-specific academia;
6. (6) provision of those acts or services necessary to provide pharmaceutical care in all areas of patient care including patient counseling, prescriptive authority, drug administration, primary care, medication therapy management, collaborative practice, and monitoring dangerous drug therapy;
7. (7) inspecting on a full time basis to ensure compliance with the practice of pharmacy;
8. (8) provision of pharmaceutical and drug information services, as well as consultant pharmacy services;
9. (9) engaging in other phases of the pharmaceutical profession including those with research or investigational or dangerous drugs;
10. (10) engaging in functions that relate directly to the administrative, advisory, or executive responsibilities pursuant to the practice of pharmacy in this state;
11. (11) the responsibility for compounding and labeling of drugs and devices;
12. (12) the proper and safe storage of drugs and devices; and
13. (13) the maintenance of proper records.
X. “Practitioner” means a health care provider duly authorized by law in New Mexico to prescribe dangerous drugs including controlled substances in schedules II through V.
Y. “Prescriptive authority” means the authority to prescribe, administer, monitor or modify dangerous drug therapy.
Z. “Professional judgment” means a cognitive process, by alicensed pharmacist, that takes education, experience and current standards of practice into consideration when drawing conclusions and reaching decisions.
AA. “Renewal period” means continuing education programs or activities must be completed during the 24 month time period occurring between the last day of the pharmacist’s birth month and the last day of his/her birth month 2 years later.
BB. “Scope of practice” means those duties and limitations of duties placed upon a pharmacist clinician and includes the limitations implied by the field of practice of the supervising physician and/or the alternate supervising physician(s) and the board.
CC. “Standard of care" means care provided by a licensee that is within the accepted standard of care that would be provided in a same or similar setting by a reasonably competent and prudent licensee or registrant with similar education, training, and experience.
DD. “Supervising physician” means a doctor, or group of doctors, of medicine or osteopathy approved by the respective board to supervise a pharmacist clinician; and includes a physician approved by the medical board as an alternate supervising physician.
[2/15/1996; 16.19.4.7 NMAC - Rn, 16 NMAC 19.4.7, 3/30/2002; A, 1/31/2007; A, 8/16/2010; A, 10/25/2012; A, 11/13/2018; A, 5/07/2024; A, 11/05/2024]