Law and Ethics California MFTs LCSWs

© 2009 by Aspira Continuing Education. All rights reserved. No part of this material may be transmitted or reproduced in any form, or by any means, mechanical or electronic without written permission of Aspira Continuing Education.

1. SCOPE OF PRACTICE 1A. MFT SCOPE OF PRACTICE 1B. LCSW SCOPE OF PRACTICE 2. UNPROFFESIONAL CONDUCT, NEGLIGENCE, LAW, ETHICS, AND STANDARD OF CARE 2A. UNPROFESSIONAL CONDUCT AND NEGLIGENCE 2B. LAW 2C. ETHICS 2D. STANDARD OF CARE 3. LEGAL ISSUES 3A. PRIVILEGE 3B. CONFIDENTIALITY 3C. EXCEPTIONS TO CONFIDENTIALITY: CHILD ABUSE, DEPENDENT ADULT & ELDER ABUSE , TARASOFF, DANGER TO SELF 3D. TREATMENT OF MINORS 3E. SEX WITH CLIENTS 3F. RECORD RETENTION AND STORAGE 3G. TERMINATION 3H. INFORMED CONSENT 3I. MALPRACTICE 4. HIPAA AND THIRD PARTY REIMBURSEMENT FOR MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES 5. CONTINUING EDUCATION 6. PROFESSIONAL ETHICS 6A. CAMFT ETHICAL STANDARDS PT II SECTION D 6B. REVISED CAMFT ETHICAL STANDARDS 6C. NASW ETHICAL STANDARDS 7. REFERENCES

1. Scope of Practice

The Attorney General describes scope of practice as the following: 1. MFTs and LCSWs “may practice psychotherapy” as it relates to the treatment of relational issues and social adjustments. 2. MFTs and LCSWs may diagnose and treat mental disorders as it relates to the treatment of relational issues and social adjustments. 3. MFTs and LCSWs may administer psychological tests, as long as the testing instrument used is within a therapist’s scope of competence as established by education, training, or experience and as long as the test is administered within the context of providing therapy. In other words, stand-alone testing of persons who are not psychotherapy clients would be outside the scope of practice for MFTs and LCSWs. Circumstances exist in which a “special relationship” is presumed by law to exist when one person is particularly vulnerable and dependent on another person who, correspondingly, has some control over the person’s welfare (Kockelman v. Segal, 1998). The relationship between a therapist and his or her patient constitutes this type of relationship. This special relationship imposes an affirmative duty on the therapist to protect others from either the therapist’s own negligence or from the client’s dangerousness towards self or others. 1A. MFT Scope of Practice MFT scope of practice is defined in Section 4980.02 of the California Business and Professions Code, “For the purposes of this chapter, the practice of marriage, family, and child counseling shall mean that service performed with individuals, couples, or groups wherein interpersonal relationships are examined for the purpose of achieving more adequate, satisfying, and productive marriage and family adjustments. This practice includes relationship and pre-marriage counseling. The applications of marriage, family, and child counseling principles and methods includes, but is not limited to, the use of applied psychotherapeutic techniques, to enable individuals to mature and grow within marriage and the family, and the provision of explanations and interpretations of the psychosexual and psychosocial aspects of relationships.” Pursuant to Business and Professions Code Section 4980.08, effective July 1, 1999, the title "licensed marriage, family and child counselor" or "marriage, family and child counselor" is hereby renamed "licensed marriage and family therapist" or "marriage and family therapist," respectively. Any reference in any statute or regulation to a "licensed marriage, family and child counselor" or "marriage, family and child counselor" shall be deemed a reference to a "licensed marriage and family therapist" or "marriage and family therapist."

1B. LCSW Scope of Practice LCSW scope of practice is defined in Section: 4996.9 of the California Business and Professions Code, “The practice of clinical social work is defined as a service in which a special knowledge of social resources, human capabilities, and the part that unconscious motivation plays in determining behavior, is directed at helping people to achieve more adequate, satisfying, and productive social adjustments. The application of social work principles and methods includes, but is not restricted to, counseling and using applied psychotherapy of a non-medical nature with individuals, families, or groups; providing information and referral services; providing or arranging for the provision of social services; explaining or interpreting the psychosocial aspects in the situations of individuals, families, or groups; helping communities to organize, to provide, or to improve social or health services; or doing research related to social work. “Psychotherapy, within the meaning of this chapter, is the use of psychosocial methods within a professional relationship, to assist the person or persons to achieve a better psychosocial adaptation, to acquire greater human realization of psychosocial potential and adaptation, to modify internal and external conditions which affect individuals, groups, or communities in respect to behavior, emotions, and thinking, in respect to their intrapersonal and interpersonal processes.”

2. UNPROFFESIONAL CONDUCT, NEGLIGENCE, LAW, ETHICS, AND STANDARD OF CARE
2A. Unprofessional Conduct and Negligence

The Business and Professions Code, Section 4982 indicates examples of unprofessional conduct including “negligence or incompetence in the performance of marriage and family therapy; misrepresentation involving type of license held, educational credentials, professional qualification or professional affiliations; performing, or holding oneself out as being able to perform services outside the scope of the license; failing to maintain confidentiality, except as otherwise permitted or required by law; and soliciting or paying remuneration for referrals. Unprofessional conduct is punishable by revocation or suspension of a license or an intern's registration; it is also a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding six months, by a fine not exceeding $2,500, or both.” Required Coursework in Psychological Testing and Psychopharmacology: Business & Professions Code 4980.41(f) requires qualifying master's or doctor's degree programs leading to the MFT license to contain survey courses in psychopharmacology. These courses will be required only for those persons who begin graduate study on or after January 1, 2001. Anyone currently in the pipeline will not be affected by this new requirement. In regards to recordkeeping, 2. Interns are not to be supervised by anyone with whom they have a personal relationship. Nor should interns receive supervision from their psychotherapists. the failure to keep records consistent with sound clinical judgment, the standards of the profession, and the nature of the services being rendered is considered unprofessional conduct. No person may, for remuneration, engage in the practice of marriage and family therapy or social work as defined by Section 4980.02, unless he or she holds a valid license as a Marriage and Family Therapist or social worker, or unless he is specifically exempted from such requirement, nor may he advertise himself or herself as performing the services of a marriage, family, child, domestic, or marital consultant, or in any way use these or any similar titles to imply that he or she performs these services without a license as provided by this chapter.