CHAPTER 252

(SB 131)

Licensed professional counselor certification requirements revised.

         ENTITLED, An Act to  revise the hours of supervision required for certification as a licensed professional counselor - mental health.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF SOUTH DAKOTA:

     Section  1.  That § 36-32-42 be amended to read as follows:

     36-32-42.   The board shall certify an applicant as a LPC-MH if the applicant fulfills the following requirements:

             (1)      Obtains licensure under this chapter as a licensed professional counselor;

             (2)      Completes a master's, specialist, or doctoral degree with an emphasis in mental health counseling from a counseling program approved by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs as listed in the Directory of Accredited Programs, July 1991, or an equivalent program as demonstrated by studies in the following areas:

             (a)      The general principles and practices of etiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental and emotional disorders and dysfunctional behavior, and the general principles and practices for the promotion of optimal mental health;

             (b)      The specific models and methods for assessing mental status and the identification of mental illness or abnormal, deviant, or psychopathologic behavior by obtaining appropriate behavioral data using a variety of techniques, including nonprojective personality assessments and achievement, aptitude, and intelligence testing, and translating findings into the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual categories, as adopted by the board by rules promulgated pursuant to chapter 1-26 . ;

             (c)      The specific theories of psychotherapy for initiating, maintaining, and terminating therapy with a mentally and emotionally impaired client or a client with disabilities in a variety of settings using a variety of modalities, including crisis intervention, brief, intermediate, and long-term modalities;

             (d)      The basic classification, indications, and contraindications of the commonly prescribed psychopharmacological medications for the purpose of identifying the effects and side effects of prescribed psychotropic medications;

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             (e)      The guidelines for conducting an intake interview and mental health history for planning and managing of client caseload;

             (f)      The specific concepts and ideas related to mental health education, outreach, prevention, and mental health promotion;

             (3)      Completes three two years of clinical experience and supervision under a licensed mental health professional after receiving a master's degree. The supervising mental health professional must hold the highest level of licensure within that supervisor's profession. Clinical experience must consist of two thousand hours of direct client contact in a clinical setting. Supervision must consist of one hundred fifty hours of direct , face-to-face supervision , at least fifty hours of which shall be face-to-face. The balance may be face-to-face or by telephone conferencing or interactive video conferencing. However, any telephone conferencing or interactive video conferencing must be secure such that reasonable precautions have been taken to ensure that the conference will not be intercepted or listened to by unauthorized persons ;

             (4)      Passes an examination approved by the board for the purpose of assessing an applicant's knowledge in the content areas of mental health counseling.

     Section  2.  That chapter 36-32 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:

     Supervision received in pursuit of licensure as a licensed professional counselor, if the supervising mental health professional holds the highest level of licensure within that supervisor's profession, and clinical experience consisting of direct client contact in a clinical setting accumulated in pursuit of licensure as a licensed professional counselor, may be applied to fulfill the certification requirements of a licensed professional counselor - mental health. No more than fifty hours of such supervision and no more than one thousand hours of such clinical experience may be applied to the certification requirements of a licensed professional counselor - mental health.

     Section  3.  That chapter 36-32 be amended by adding thereto a NEW SECTION to read as follows:

     Any person pursuing certification as a licensed professional counselor or a licensed professional counselor - mental health who filed a supervision plan before July 1, 2004, may submit a revised supervision plan in accordance with this Act. The period of time during which the person accumulated clinical experience and received qualifying supervision and the actual hours of clinical experience completed and supervision received before July 1, 2004, shall be credited to the person's revised supervision plan. The board shall accept the period of time and the actual hours in the revised plan if the period of time and the actual hours are in accord with section 2 of this Act.

     Signed February 25, 2004.

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