N.J. Admin. Code § 10:31-3.3

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 11, June 3, 2024

Section 10:31-3.3 - Screener certification requirement, qualifications, and duties

(a) Screener certification shall be granted to individuals who possess the qualifications delineated in (b) below who have completed the Division's screener certification course and who have passed the screener certification proficiency examination.

1. The screening service shall maintain records of the certification of screeners and their completion or fulfillment of re-certification requirements.

(b) Individuals who apply for status as a certified screener after August 16, 2010, shall possess at least one of the following educational credentials, which shall serve as prerequisites to admission to the Division's screener certification course and to subsequent status as a temporary or fully certified screener:

1. A master's degree in a mental-health-related field from an accredited institution, plus one year of postmaster's, full-time equivalent, professional experience in a psychiatric setting;

2. A bachelor's degree in a mental-health-related field from an accredited institution, plus three years post-bachelor's, full-time equivalent, professional experience in the mental health field, one of which is in a crisis setting;

3. A bachelor's degree in a mental-health-related field from an accredited institution, plus two years post-bachelor's, full-time equivalent, professional experience in the mental health field, one of which is in a crisis setting and currently enrolled in a master's program; or

4. A licensed registered nurse with three years full-time equivalent, post-RN, professional experience in the mental health field, one of which is in a crisis setting.

(c) Prior to achieving full status as a certified screener, an individual shall serve as a temporary screener and shall receive a "T" number.

1. Temporary screener certification entitles a mental health professional to perform emergency screening in a screening service for one year from the issuance of the "T" number.

2. While a temporary screener may perform all the functions of a certified screener during this one-year period, a certified screener must review and approve the screening document completed by the temporary screener.

3. Within one year of submitting an application for temporary status, the temporary screener shall attend and successfully complete a Division-approved Basic Screening Certification Training Series and shall pass the Screener Proficiency Exam.

i. Screeners who have not attended and completed every class in the training series shall not be allowed to sit for the proficiency exam.

ii. Temporary screeners who fail to complete each class in the training series must make up the missed class(es) in the next Basic Screener Training Certification series.

iii. Temporary screeners who fail to pass the proficiency exam must pass a make-up exam.

iv. Temporary screeners who fail to either complete each class in the basic training series or pass the exam before the one-year expiration of their temporary status will be placed on conditional status, pursuant to the terms of (f) below.

v. Temporary screeners who have successfully completed all basic certification classes and passed the proficiency exam shall be issued a permanent screening (or "S") number, which shall be valid for two years.

(d) Screener certification shall be valid for two years from the date of certification, with recertification in accordance with (e) below.

(e) Biennial recertification shall be granted after a screener has submitted evidence of completion of 15 continuing education hours approved by the Division on a case-by-case basis, with regard to the relevance of the subject matter to emergency or screening services. These may include courses, conferences or in-service training. At a minimum, six of those 15 hours shall be provided by the Division-sponsored screener training course.

(f) A temporary screener who fails to complete the basic certification training series and pass the screener proficiency exam within the required one-year period or, a certified screener who fails to complete the recertification requirements set forth at (e) above, shall be placed on conditional or "C" status.

1. Screening documents and police transport forms completed by a screener on conditional status shall be co-signed by the screening coordinator within one working day of the screener's completion.

2. All documents signed by a screener on conditional status shall indicate that status.

3. A screener on conditional status shall have six months from the date of conversion to such status to satisfy all outstanding certification requirements.

4. Failure to remediate the conditions resulting in conditional status within six months shall result in the loss of all screening status until these requirements are met. In addition, the screening coordinator, agency director, Division regional coordinator, and the Department's Office of Licensing shall be notified as to this loss of screening status.

(g) The duties of a screener shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

1. Screening of consumers who may be in need of commitment;

2. Assessment, referral and linkage;

3. Hotline coverage;

4. Crisis stabilization;

5. Development of alternative treatment plans;

6. Consultation, training and technical assistance to other clinical staff;

7. Consultation with the psychiatrist;

8. Supervision and monitoring of consumers;

9. Screening outreach;

10. Screening for admission to STCFs;

11. Arranging for a consumer's discharge or transfer out of the screening service;

12. Arranging for a consumer's appropriate transport to a receiving facility; and

13. Determining whether the consumer has executed an Advance Directive for Mental Health Care.

N.J. Admin. Code § 10:31-3.3

Amended by 50 N.J.R. 537(a), effective 1/16/2018