Md. Code Regs. 10.58.08.02 - Definitions

A. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated.

B. Terms Defined.

(1) "Accredited educational institution" means a Board-approved college or university that is accredited by a national or regional accrediting body recognized by the Council on Post-Secondary Accreditation or through one of the following bodies recognized by the U.S. Department of Education:

(a) The Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools - the Commission on Higher Education;

(b) The New England Association of Schools and Colleges;

(c) The North Central Association of Schools and Colleges;

(d) The Northwest Association of Schools and of Colleges and Universities;

(e) The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools; and

(f) The Western Association of Colleges and Schools.

(2) "Appraisal" means:

(a) Selecting, administering, scoring, and interpreting instruments designed to assess an individual's aptitudes, attitudes, abilities, achievements, interests, and personal characteristics; and

(b) Using nonstandardized methods and techniques for understanding human behavior in relation to coping with, adapting to, or changing life situations.

(3) "Board-approved marriage and family therapy supervisor" means:

(a) An American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy approved and Board-approved:

(i) Supervisor;

(ii) Supervisor in training; or

(iii) Supervisor candidate;

(b) A licensed clinical marriage and family therapist who:

(i) Meets the requirements for licensure under this chapter; and

(ii) Has been approved by the Board;

(c) A licensed clinical professional counselor, licensed clinical marriage and family therapist, licensed clinical professional art therapist, or licensed clinical alcohol and drug counselor who meets the requirements for licensure under Health Occupations Article, Title 17, Annotated Code of Maryland, and has been approved by the Board; or

(d) An individual who is authorized by law to practice a health occupation which includes the diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and amelioration of psychological problems and emotional or mental conditions of individuals or groups, and has been approved by the Board.

(4) "Client contact hour" means at least 45 minutes of direct session time with a client present.

(5) "Clinical supervision hour" means at least 45 minutes of direct supervision time with the supervisee present.

(6) "Direct clinical marriage and family therapy services" means the provision of face-to-face clinical marriage and family therapy services to clients and their significant others that includes, but is not limited, to the following:

(a) Individual counseling;

(b) Group counseling;

(c) Family counseling;

(d) Couples counseling;

(e) Evaluation;

(f) Intake or assessment;

(g) Diagnosis;

(h) Treatment planning with a client; and

(i) Crisis management or intervention.

(7) Face-to-Face.

(a) "Face-to-face" means in the physical presence of an individual or using video conferencing which allows individuals to hear and see each other in synchronous points of time.

(b) "Face-to-face" does not include:

(i) Telephone communication; or

(ii) Internet communication that does not involve synchronous video conferencing, such as instant messaging services and social networking sites.

(8) "Indirect clinical marriage and family therapy services" means all case management and professional development activities related to the provision of clinical marriage and family therapy services to a client that include, but are not limited to, the following:

(a) Referral;

(b) Intake or assessment by telephone or other means when the client is not face-to-face;

(c) Receiving individual and group supervision at site or at the university;

(d) Consultation with other professionals;

(e) Treatment planning with other professionals;

(f) Case staffing;

(g) Staff meetings;

(h) Related trainings and seminars;

(i) Record keeping;

(j) Report writing;

(k) Case notes;

(l) Providing clinical training;

(m) Telephone triage;

(n) Case management;

(o) Program development; and

(p) Other clinical marriage and family therapy administrative duties as required by the setting in which the clinical hours are accrued.

(9) "Licensed clinical marriage and family therapist" means an individual approved by the Board to practice clinical marriage and family therapy.

(10) "Licensed graduate marriage and family therapist" means an individual approved by the Board to practice graduate marriage and family therapy under the supervision of a Board-approved marriage and family therapy supervisor while fulfilling the supervised clinical experience for licensure under Health Occupations Article, §§ 17-303 and 17-309, Annotated Code of Maryland, and Regulation .04B of this chapter.

(11) "Licensed mental health care provider" means a:

(a) Licensed clinical marriage and family therapist; or

(b) Licensed clinical professional counselor, licensed clinical alcohol and drug counselor, licensed clinical professional art therapist, licensed certified social worker-clinical, psychiatrist, psychologist, or psychiatric nurse practitioner who is authorized by law to practice a health occupation that includes the diagnosis, prevention, treatment, and amelioration of psychological problems and emotional or mental conditions of individuals or groups.

(12) "Marriage and family therapy field" means a specific degree program with a marriage and family therapy emphasis, including, but not limited to, the following areas:

(a) Marriage and family therapy, including:

(i) Marriage and family counseling;

(ii) Couple and family therapy;

(iii) Couple and family counseling;

(iv) Family and systems therapy;

(v) Family therapy; or

(vi) Family counseling;

(b) Counseling practice under Health Occupations Article, Title 17, Annotated Code of Maryland; or

(c) Practice areas of other mental health providers, including:

(i) Psychiatry;

(ii) Psychology;

(iii) Social Work;

(iv) Psychiatric nursing; or

(v) Any other program of study approved by the Board.

(13) "Practice clinical marriage and family therapy" means:

(a) To engage professionally and for compensation in marriage and family therapy and appraisal activities by providing services involving the application of therapy principles and methods in the diagnosis, crisis management, prevention, treatment, and amelioration of psychological problems, emotional conditions, or mental conditions of individuals or groups, including couples and families; and

(b) The use of instruments that require specialized psychological training for administration and interpretation as described in Health Occupations Article, § 17-310, Annotated Code of Maryland.

(14) "Practice graduate marriage and family therapy" means to practice marriage and family therapy:

(a) Under the supervision of a Board-approved marriage and family therapy supervisor; and

(b) While fulfilling the requirements for supervised experience under:

(i) Health Occupations Article, § 17-303, Annotated Code of Maryland; and

(ii) Regulation .04 of this chapter.

(15) "Psychotherapy" means providing clinical services that involve:

(a) The professional application of psychotherapy and counseling theories and methods, including, but not limited to, psychodynamic, cognitive, behavioral, humanistic, systems theories, or trauma informed care to assist the client in:

(i) Improving functioning;

(ii) Obtaining symptom relief;

(iii) Preventing psychosocial dysfunction;

(iv) Changing personality; or

(v) Maintaining improved functioning; and

(b) Situations in which the principal discourse involves, but is not limited to:

(i) Diagnosis of psychopathology based on standard diagnostic criteria;

(ii) Psychotherapeutic treatment of mental disorders, emotional disorders, and adjustment reactions utilizing clinically appropriate treatment modalities;

(iii) Childhood trauma and abuse;

(iv) Identifying and changing self-defeating patterns of behaving, thinking, feeling, believing, or interacting with others in systems;

(v) Developmental issues;

(vi) Personality development; or

(vii) Problems related to disorders of thinking, emotional suffering, addictions, behavior, or interpersonal dysfunctions.

(16) "Related field" means a profession using counseling whose academic requirements include degree programs from an accredited college or university that has curricula in areas such as expressive therapy, gerontology, human services, marriage and family therapy, mental health, pastoral counseling, psychology, psychotherapy, social work, and other areas approved by the Board.

(17) "Relative" means an individual connected to another by:

(a) Blood;

(b) Marriage;

(c) Guardianship; or

(d) Domestic partnership.

(18) "Scope of competence" means that area within which the individual is proficient to practice, based on education, training, supervised experience, and professional credentials.

(19) "Substantially equivalent" means:

(a) A degree in a program of studies determined by the Board to have:

(i) Substantial marriage and family therapy emphasis in the subject matter; and

(ii) The extent of training required for the specified level of licensure; and

(b) The applicant meets the relevant qualifications stated in Health Occupations Article, § 17 "303, Annotated Code of Maryland.

(20) "Supervised clinical experience in marriage and family therapy" means the provision of marriage and family therapy services conducted under the supervision of a Board-approved marriage and family therapy supervisor.

(21) "Supervisee" means a licensed graduate marriage and family therapist obtaining the supervised experience required by Health Occupations Article, § 17-303, Annotated Code of Maryland.

(22) "Supervision" means a formalized professional relationship between a supervisor and supervisee in which the supervisor directs, guides, monitors, instructs, and evaluates the supervisee's clinical marriage and family therapy practice while promoting development of the supervisee's knowledge, skills, and abilities to provide clinical marriage and family therapy services in an ethical and competent manner and includes an acceptance of direct responsibility for the client services rendered by the supervisee.

(23) Supervision Training.

(a) "Supervision training" means a course or program designed to provide information regarding the supervision process utilized by licensed clinical marriage and family therapists in a variety of settings.

(b) "Supervision training" includes training obtained through:

(i) Graduate-level course work;

(ii) Continuing education units (CEUs); or

(iii) Other training hours approved by the Board.

(24) "Under the supervision of a Board-approved marriage and family therapy supervisor" means engaging in an ongoing process of receiving direction from a Board-approved supervisor that includes:

(a) Monitoring the performance of a supervisee; and

(b) Providing documented and direct consultation, guidance, and instruction with respect to clinical skill and competency.

(25) "Written contract for supervision" means an agreement between the supervisee and Board-approved supervisor that is initiated before beginning supervision and that details the scope of supervision and includes at a minimum the following:

(a) Name and credentials of the supervisor and the supervisee;

(b) Primary purpose, goals, and objectives of the supervision process;

(c) Details of provisions, including frequency, format, and case or chart review;

(d) Methods of documentation;

(e) Duties and responsibilities of the supervisor and the supervisee;

(f) Procedural considerations in the case of the supervisor's absence; and

(g) Information regarding the supervisor's scope of competence.

Notes

Md. Code Regs. 10.58.08.02

Regulations.02 adopted as an emergency provision effective October 1, 2001 (28:22 Md. R. 1932); adopted permanently effective January 21, 2002 (29:1 Md. R. 24)
Regulation .02B amended as an emergency provision effective October 1, 2002 (29:25 Md. R. 1979); amended permanently effective March 3, 2003 (30:4 Md. R. 317); amended effective 49:7 Md. R.467, eff. 4/4/2022