Licensed Professional Counselor

(a)Definitions. In this Article:

(1)“Accredited educational institution” shall mean any educational institution which grants a doctoral or master’s degree and is accredited by a regional accrediting body in the United States or by another accrediting or recognized approval agency recognized by the Board, including state, national or foreign approving agencies.

(2)“Clinical supervision” shall mean the supervision of no more than six

(6)persons at the same time who are acquiring and completing clinical experience in accordance with Guam law. Clinical supervision is that aspect of instructional supervision which draws upon data from direct firsthand observation of actual teaching, or other professional events, and involves face-to-face and other associated interactions between the observer(s) and the person(s) observed in the course of analyzing the observed professional behaviors and activities and seeking to define and/or develop next steps toward improved performance. This includes, but is not limited to the following: case consultation, the assessment and diagnosis of presenting problems, development and implementation of treatment plans, and the evaluation of the course of treatment.

(3)“Consultant” shall mean a credentialed professional who provides expert service, advice, or makes recommendations for a fee or pro bono, by phone, internet, in person, or by other means to an individual licensed in Guam as a Licensed Professional Counselor for the purposes of maximizing therapeutic benefit for a client.

(4)“Licensed Professional Counselor” shall mean a person licensed in Guam to practice Professional Counseling as defined in these rules and regulations.

(5)“National Counselor Examination for Licensure and Certification (NCE)” shall mean the examination compiled by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC).

(6)“Professional Counseling” shall mean the use of psychotherapeutic techniques in the delivery of services to individuals and groups in order to diagnose and treat mental, emotional and nervous disorders, whether these are behavioral, cognitive or affective. Professional Counseling includes, but is not limited to:

(A)assessment and diagnosis of presenting problems through inquiry, observation, evaluation and integration of diagnostic information;

(B)designing and developing treatment plans by incorporating and integrating recognized psychotherapeutic theories in establishing treatment goals and interventions collaboratively with clients; and

(C)implementing and evaluating the course of treatment by incorporating psychotherapeutic theories to assist individuals and groups.

(7)“Counseling” shall mean a specialized, formal interaction between a Licensed Professional Counselor, or other Mental Health Professional, and a client in which a therapeutic relationship is established to help resolve symptoms of mental disorders, psychosocial stress, family problems or other difficulties which is designed to enhance problem solving skills and coping abilities as identified in a treatment plan.

(8)“Individual Counseling” shall mean planned interventions to assist a client to enlarge competencies, and increase problem solving skills and coping abilities according to identified treatment goals. CH. 12 MEDICAL PRACTICES - PART II

(9)“Group Counseling” shall mean the gathering together of unrelated individuals at the direction of a group facilitator or counselor for a therapeutic purpose.

(10)A “Mental Health Intern License designation” shall mean a person who is seeking licensure and is acquiring the three thousand (3,000) hours of post-graduate clinical experience in accordance with this Article for purposes of acquiring and ultimately meeting the requisite requirements for full licensure as an Individual, Marriage and Family Therapist (IMFT), Certified Professional Counselor (CPC), Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), or other license deemed by the Board to be substantially equivalent to these professions, who is licensed and authorized to provide such supervision in the United States, its territories or a foreign country determined to be acceptable on a case-by-case basis by the Board. To be eligible for the intern license, the applicant shall have completed all of the other criteria required for qualification for his or her respective field for licensure pursuant to § 121301(b)(1)(A), § 121302(a), § 121302(b) or § 121303(b), respectively, of this Article.

(b)Qualifications for Licensure.

(1)The provisions of this Act shall take effect two years after enactment. At that time, the Board shall issue a license as a Licensed Professional Counselor to an applicant who:

(A)has a doctorate or master’s degree from an accredited educational institution with a program in psychology, counseling, marriage and family therapy, clinical social work or other psycho-therapeutic discipline. The applicant must be able to show documentation of:

(i)a minimum of seventy-two quarter hours or forty-eight semester hours of graduate studies (as suggested by the Counsel for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs [CACREP]) that:

(ii)includes course content in the following areas:

(aa)Human Growth and Development;

(bb)Social/Cultural Foundations;

(cc)Counseling Theories and Techniques;

(dd)Group Work;

(ee)Career and Lifestyle Development;

(ff)Appraisal (test and measurements for individuals and groups);

(gg)Research and Program Evaluation;

(hh)Professional Orientation (to counseling); and

(iii)Professional Ethics; and

(iv)includes a practicum, consisting of a minimum of one hundred hours; and

(v)includes an internship, consisting of a minimum of six hundred hours;

(B)has completed a minimum of three thousand hours of documented post-graduate clinical experience and one hundred hours of supervision by a licensed Individual, Marriage and Family Therapist (IMFT), Certified Professional Counselor (CPC), Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT), Clinical Psychologist, Psychiatrist or other license CH. 12 MEDICAL PRACTICES - PART II deemed by the Board to be substantially equivalent to these professions, who is licensed and authorized to provide such supervision in the United States, its territories or a foreign country determined to be acceptable on a case by case basis by the Board. The three thousand hours of post graduate clinical experience may include, but is not limited to: face-to-face treatment of clients, keeping clinical notes, supervision, treatment team meetings, consultation, education, treatment planning, observation and other activities generally recognized to be part of clinical practice. A minimum of one thousand five hundred hours of the three thousand hours of postgraduate clinical experience must be in the face-to-face treatment of individuals or groups;

(C)has successfully passed the National Counselor Examination for Licensure and Certification

(NCE)which has been conducted in a manner approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC), and

(D)has documented completion of training by a professional association or educational institution and approved by the Board that consists of at least six hours of professional ethics, three hours of culturally competent counseling practices with Micronesian communities in Guam and one hour of mandated reporting.

(2)For an individual who has not engaged in post-graduate experience or cannot document a minimum of three thousand hours of post-graduate clinical experience under the supervision of a licensed IMFT, CPC, LCSW, LMHC, LPC, MFT, Clinical Psychologist, Psychiatrist or other license deemed by the Board to be substantially equivalent to these professions, who is licensed and authorized to provide such supervision in the United States, its territories or a foreign country determined to be acceptable on a case by case basis by the Board; such individual may practice under an internship program approved by the Board prior to engagement in that program in order to gain that supervision in Guam. The three thousand hour internship program may include, but is not limited to: face-to-face treatment of clients, keeping clinical notes, supervision, treatment team meetings, consultation, education, treatment planning, observation and other activities generally recognized to be part of clinical practice. A minimum of one thousand five hundred hours of the three thousand hours must be in the face-to-face treatment of individuals and groups, and a minimum of one hundred hours must be supervision. To provide such supervision in Guam, a person must be a licensed Individual Marriage and Family Therapist, Licensed Professional Counselor, Marriage and Family Therapist or Licensed Clinical Social Worker licensed in Guam who has held a license for a minimum of five years; or a Clinical Psychologist or Psychiatrist licensed in Guam who has held a license for a minimum of three years.

(3)Individuals who hold a current, valid license issued by a state of the United States, its territories or foreign country, approved by the Board on a case-by-case basis as a Certified Professional Counselor, Licensed Clinical Counselor of Mental Health, Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Licensed Mental Health Practitioner, Licensed Professional Counselor of Mental Health, Professional Counselor, Marriage and Family Therapist, or other license deemed by the Board to be substantially equivalent to the Guam License for Licensed Professional Counselor, shall be eligible for the Guam license for a Licensed Professional Counselor.

(4)[No text]

(A)The Board shall issue a “Professional Counselor Intern License” and number to an applicant who has satisfied all of the applicable requisite provisions of qualifications for licensure pursuant to Subsection (1)(A) of this Section, and who is acquiring the three thousand (3,000) hours of post-graduate clinical experience required for licensure, as provided pursuant to Subsection (1)(B) of this Section. CH. 12 MEDICAL PRACTICES - PART II

(B)The Board shall provide the application form to be completed by an applicant for a Mental Health Intern License.

(c)Exceptions to Licensure.

(1)No person may practice professional counseling in Guam who is not licensed as a Licensed Professional Counselor by the Board, unless such practice is approved by the Board or other Guam licensing Board. However, this Article does not prohibit:

(A)an employee of the Federal government from performing official duties on federal property;

(B)an LCSW, PC, LPC, CPC, LMHC, MFT, Psychologist or Psychiatrist, currently licensed in another jurisdiction of the United States from consulting with or advising a Licensed Professional Counselor in Guam. However, the consultant, if not licensed in Guam may not provide services to a client directly; or

(C)an active student in good standing as a requirement of a university program for completion of a degree, or a person who is engaged in the completion of the requirement of three thousand hours of post-graduate clinical experience to become licensed as an LPC, under the supervision of a Guam licensed IMFT, LPC, LMHC, MFT, LCSW, clinical psychologist or psychiatrist, from performing assigned duties.

(2)Nothing herein prohibits qualified members of other professional groups, such as clinical psychologists, school psychologists, counseling psychologists, social workers or ordained clergy from doing work of a counseling nature consistent with the training and code of ethics for their respective professions; provided, that they do not hold themselves out to the public as a Professional Counselor.

(d)Scope of Practice. Licensed Professional Counselors use psychotherapeutic techniques to prevent, assess, evaluate, diagnose, develop treatment goals, plans and objectives, treat and evaluate outcomes for mental, emotional or behavioral disorders and associated distresses that interfere with mental health.

(e)Client Confidentiality. Client Confidentiality is defined and regulated as set forth in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), the ethical rules of the American Counseling Association (ACA), Guam law, and revisions thereof. Breach of client confidentiality, except as provided for by HIPAA, the ACA, or Guam law shall be considered unprofessional conduct and may be grounds for revocation or suspension of the license.

(f)Continuing Education Requirements. A licensee shall complete a total of forty contact hours or four Continuing Education Units directly related to the practice of Professional Counseling within each two year licensure period to qualify for renewal of licensure. Continuing education credits in early childhood development and literacy as prescribed by the Board and that conforms with the Department of Public Health and Social Services regulations and documentation of that education shall be required for renewal of licensure under this Article.

(g)Grandfather Provision. All licensees who hold a current, valid license as an Individual, Marriage, and Family Therapist issued by the Guam Board of Allied Health Examiners at the time this Act becomes law shall be deemed to hold a current, valid license as a Licensed Professional Counselor.