Section 216-RICR-40-05-11.2 - DefinitionsA. In addition to the definitions within R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 5-63.2, the following terms shall be construed as follows: 1. "Act" refers to R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 5-63.2, entitled, "Clinical Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists."2. "Allied field" means counselor education, psychology, marriage and family therapy, counseling psychology, community mental health, education with a concentration in counseling or psychology, or other field determined by the Board to be an allied field. Said allied field shall include all components of the core curriculum, as it appears in §11.5.1 of this Part entitled "The Core Curriculum: Clinical Mental Health Counselors" or in 11.5.2 of this Part entitled "The Core Curriculum: Marriage and Family Therapists".3. "Board" means the Board of Clinical Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists.4. "CACREP" means Counsel for Accreditation of Counseling amp; Related Educational programs.5. "Clinical counselor in mental health" means a person who has been licensed pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-63.2-9, which license is in force and not suspended or revoked as of the particular time in question.6. "Clinical instruction" means all supervised course work within which the student has the opportunity to engage in a broad range of clinical activities similar to those performed by a licensed counselor/therapist. This includes all practice and internships completed within a student's program.7. "The practice of clinical mental health counseling," in addition to the definition in R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 5-63.2, includes the following professional services: a. Promoting mental health and wellness, which includes the achievement of social, career, and emotional development across the lifespan, as well as preventing and treating mental disorders and providing crisis intervention.b. Psychotherapy, diagnosis, evaluation, administration of assessments, tests, and appraisals, referral, and treatment of behavioral, emotional, addiction and mental disorders, and establishment of counseling treatment plans for individuals, couples, groups, and families with emotional, mental, addiction, and physical disorders.c. Consultation and program evaluation, program administration within and to schools and organizations, and training and supervision of interns, trainees, and pre-licensed professional counselors through accepted and established principles, methods, procedures, and ethics of counselor supervision.d. The practice of clinical mental health counseling does not include functions or practices that are not within the professional's training or education.8. "Department" means the Rhode Island Department of Health.9. "Director" means the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Health.10. "Individual (face-to-face) supervision" means a tutorial relationship between a member of the mental health counseling profession and a student trainee. The supervisor monitors the clinical work of the trainee in order to evaluate this work, monitor the quality of services being offered to clients, and enhance the professional growth of the trainee.11. "Internship" means a part of an organized graduate or post-graduate program in counseling therapy and shall constitute a supervised experience within a mental health and/or marriage and family setting.12. "Marriage and family therapist" means a person who has been licensed pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 5-63.2-10 which license is in force and not suspended or revoked as of the particular time in question.13. "This Part" means Rules and Regulations for Licensing Clinical Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapists.14. "Person" means any individual, firm, corporation, partnership, organization or body politic.15. "Practice of marriage and family therapy" means the rendering of professional services to individuals, family groups, couples or organizations for monetary compensation. These professional services would include applying principles, methods, and therapeutic techniques for the purpose of resolving emotional conflicts, modifying perceptions and behavior, enhancing communications and understanding among all family members and the prevention of family and individual crisis. Individual marriage and family therapists also engage in psychotherapy of a nonmedical and nonpsychotic nature with appropriate referrals to psychiatric resources.16. "Practicum" means a part of an organized graduate program or postgraduate program in counseling therapy and shall constitute a supervised experience within the graduate counseling program or post-graduate program.17. "Recognized educational institution" means any educational institution which grants a Bachelor's, Master's, or Doctoral degree, and which is recognized by the Board of Clinical Mental Health Counselors and Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners or a recognized post-graduate clinical training program as specified in R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 5-63.2-9 and 5-63.2-10.18. "R.I. Gen. Laws" means Rhode Island General Laws, as amended.19. "Use a title or description of" means to hold oneself out to the public as having a particular status by means of stating on signs, mailboxes, address plates, stationery, announcements, calling cards or other instruments of professional identification.216 R.I. Code R. § 216-RICR-40-05-11.2
Amended effective 5/15/2023