Course 8T - Human Trafficking of Adolescents in America

CEU By Net, LLC sponsors this online course, 'Human Trafficking of Adolescents in America' - NOW RE-APPROVED by Texas HHSC for the required certificate through August 9, 2025.

The course earns 8 credit hours (CEUs) that you can apply to multiple continuing education categories including SUD and mental health Assessment, Cultural Awareness; Federal and State Laws and Rules; Ethics, Crisis Intervention and Trauma-Informed Care; LGBTQ youth; interagency and community coordination; abuse, neglect, exploitation, and more.

The course earns 8 CEUs for Texas, Florida, and most other states nationwide for mental health and addiction licenses and certifications, and 8 hours for NAADAC and IC&RC. Earns 8 PDHs for EACC-EAPA, re-approved May 6, 2024, domains I, II, and III. Earns 5.5 credit hours for NBCC and California BBS (and applies to your required 6 hours of Laws and Ethics for BBS).


This course presents an ethical, sensitive, and culturally appropriate approach to identifying, assessing, and assisting minors who are victims of Human Trafficking, including coordination with local and Federal Law Enforcement in the prosecution of trafficking perpetrators.

The course material includes a printable, downloadable prototype assessment for use with trafficking victims, which is important in securing interagency services for survivors and successful prosecution of perpetrators. The course also explains the Federal laws applying to the trafficking of minors vs. adults and clarifies common misunderstandings about what constitutes 'trafficking.'


The GOALS of this course:

1. Learn the focus, approach, and achievements of the US Department of Justice and its partner organizations in the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking.

2. Understand the Federal laws and legal definitions of Human Trafficking for both minors and adults as defined in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA); know how to recognize the various forms of sex and labor trafficking to which victims are submitted which violate their Human Rights; and understand the volitional difference between Human Trafficking and Prostitution in Adults.

3. Learn a research-based ETHICAL and CULTURALLY AWARE approach to assisting adolescent victims of Human Trafficking with the development of personal SAFETY strategies and methods of escape from the perpetrator.

4. Become familiar with the ethically formulated Trafficking Assessment content which is required for the successful prosecution of human trafficking perpetrators, including victim-centered language and questions, awareness of trauma-sensitive dynamics, sensitivity to safety issues, and respect for the victim's right to PRIVACY and CONFIDENTIALITY.

5. Understand the ETHICAL ISSUES and PROFESSIONAL CHALLENGES involved when working with the law enforcement team—i.e., the inherent limitations placed on CLIENT CONFIDENTIALITY, to successfully prosecute the perpetrator; and the need for both the credentialed staff and the unlicensed staff to maintain compliance with the rules for SCOPE of PRACTICE.

6. Know the characteristics and methods of Human Trafficking perpetrators and the diverse settings in which they operate, violating the FEDERAL LAW in the United States and the HUMAN RIGHTS of the victim.

7. Understand the typical etiology of how Human Trafficking exploitation and abuse occur in the lives of homeless and runaway youth, and the reasons why escape is difficult or impossible without TRAUMA Informed assistance and INTERAGENCY COORDINATION between LAW enforcement, SOCIAL SERVICES, and behavioral health professionals.

8. Understand the role of drugs, alcohol, homelessness, and survival sex in the deprivation of human rights which is characteristic of Human Trafficking.

9. Know an ethical way to work with trafficking victims to develop a safety plan at various stages in the human trafficking situation – while a victim is in the situation, during the process of leaving, and once the victim has left – and how to ensure safety for staff within the program.

10. Recognize the impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic upon resources for homeless and runaway adolescents who are targets of Human Trafficking perpetrators.


AUTHORS, PUBLISHERS: The material in this manual is published and copyrighted in the public domain by the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, SAMHSA, U.S. Office of Victims of Crime, Homeland Security, The Polaris Project, and Family & Youth Services Bureau - Runaway and Homeless Youth Training & Technical Assistance Center - National Safe Place Network.

APPROVALS:

NBCC, California BBS (including Laws and Ethics), Texas Mental Health licensing boards, Texas TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, California CAADE and CADTP, NAADAC, IC&RC, Florida Certification Board (FCB), Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling. Earns 8 PDHs in Domain 3 for EACC-EAPA approved Dec 22, 2021. Based on these approvals, the course is approved by most mental health and addiction licensing boards.

Note: You are free to read, download, save, and print the Study Guide(s) and Quiz(zes) for this Course, before deciding to enroll in the course. These course materials are public domain, and CEU By Net is sponsoring the course for CE Credit. You may STUDY THIS COURSE and the quiz AT NO CHARGE. You may enroll in the course at any time. You must take the quiz ONLINE, by logging into your My Home Page , clicking on the course you want to complete, completing the quiz or quizzes required, and submitting the Feedback Form. You will then instantly receive your course completion certificate! For more information on this course - and to see a COPY of the online quiz - click the '+' symbols, below:

Guide 1_Course 8T_Human Trafficking of Adolescents in America

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Guide 2_Course 8T_Human Trafficking of Adolescents in America

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Guide 3_Course 8T_Human Trafficking of Adolescents in America

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Course 4S - Developmental Model of Clinical Supervision in Behavioral Health

Course 4S - 'The Developmental Model of Clinical Supervision in Behavioral Health' - is sponsored online by CEU By Net. The course earns 4.5 Credit Hours in Clinical Supervision [also valid for Ethics credit and Risk Management credit]. For social workers, mental health and addiction counselors, LMFTs, NAADAC, IC&RC, TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, California CAADE and CADTP. Florida Certification Board for CAP. General Credit for Florida Mental Health. Re-approved by EACC for 4 PDHs, Domains I, II, III expires June 13, 2025. For NBCC and California BBS, the course awards 3.0 Credit Hours in Clinical Supervision.

Based upon these credentials, the course is accepted by most state boards for behavioral health CE credit. Some boards may require formal review and approval of the course for purposes of Supervisor Training credit.


This sponsored course presents the Blended or Integrated Developmental Model of Supervision, articulated and published by Stoltenberg, McNeill, and Delworth (1998), in which both the Supervisee and the Supervisor progress through specific DEVELOPMENTAL LEVELS or STAGES of professional identity and functionality.

Originally published by SAMHSA-CSAT (2009 - Rockville Maryland) as part of ‘Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) No. 52’, it was revised and updated by SAMHSA-CSAT in 2014; and was subsequently indexed and published online in this document’s format in 2014 by National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health (NIH) 8600 Rockville Pike, Bethesda MD, 20894 USA as ‘Part 1, Chapter 1, Clinical Supervision and Professional Development of the Substance Abuse Counselor: Information You Need to Know.’

References and bibliographical notations are included within the text from NBCC, AAMFT, NASW, and numerous recognized mental health research publications.


The course addresses in detail the purposes, principles, ETHICS, METHODS, and TECHNIQUES of CLINICAL SUPERVISION of Behavioral Health SUPERVISEES by licensed Supervisors, including the LEGAL necessity of written documentation of all supervisory interactions, observations, and assessments including formative and summative performance evaluations.

The course further addresses the legal issues and vulnerabilities (Risk Management) involved in the supervision of mental health and SUD professionals by licensed supervisors, and the need for ethical and legal DIRECT OBSERVATION of the supervisee's work with clients. The benefits and disadvantages of each of the OBSERVATION METHODS is described.

The course explains the nature of the collaborative relationship between Supervisors and Supervisees, and the Supervisor's function as role model and mentor for Supervisees, as well as the role of GATEKEEPER for licensure in the profession.

GOALS of THIS COURSE:

1. Understand the purpose and essential functions of the supervisory relationship and process -- teacher, consultant, coach, mentor/role model, and guardian of the welfare of the organization's clients.

2. Understand the Supervisor's role as 'Gatekeeper' for the behavioral health professions.

3. Know the central principles and guidelines of Clinical Supervision and Risk Management pertaining to ethical and legal vulnerability of both the supervisor and the supervisee, dual relationships and boundary issues, informed consent, confidentiality, and supervisor-specific responsibilities including prevention of supervisee burnout and compassion fatigue.

4. Understand the legal distinction between 'direct liability' and 'vicarious liability' (respondeat superior), and how these apply to the ethical and legal need for DIRECT OBSERVATION of supervisees' work and DOCUMENTATION of supervisory actions and interactions.

5. Know how to implement the steps in a 'decision tree' to effectively manage a situation in which the supervisor is concerned about a possible ETHICAL or LEGAL violation by a supervisee.

6. According to the Developmental Model of Supervision, know and be able to recognize the levels/stages of development of Behavioral Health Supervisees, and the levels/stages of Supervisor development.

7. Know the various methods and techniques of MONITORING and EVALUATING the development and clinical performance of supervisees, including DIRECT and INDIRECT methods of observation and the benefits and limitations which apply to each.

8. Understand the difference between clinical and administrative supervision, and learn approaches to balancing both responsibilities when necessary.

9. Know how to integrate CULTURAL COMPETENCE into supervision and how to prevent, recognize and address issues of problematic cultural competence between the supervisee and the client, and between the supervisor and the supervisee.

10. Learn about the June 2020 changes in Federal statute ‘42 CFR, Part 2,’ pertaining to confidentiality for persons receiving treatment for SUD, and the revision of NBCC's ETHICS policy for Online Counseling, which was expanded to include Provision of Distance Professional Services in multiple distance media formats.

Note: You are free to read, download, save, and print the Study Guide(s) and Quiz(zes) for this Course, before deciding to enroll in the course. These course materials are public domain, and CEU By Net is sponsoring the course for CE Credit. You may STUDY THIS COURSE and the quiz AT NO CHARGE. You may enroll in the course at any time. You must take the quiz ONLINE, by logging into your My Home Page , clicking on the course you want to complete, completing the quiz or quizzes required, and submitting the Feedback Form. You will then instantly receive your course completion certificate! For more information on this course - and to see a COPY of the online quiz - click the '+' symbols, below:

Guide 1_Course 4S

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Guide 2_Course_4S

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Course 3TMH - Ethics and Practice of Telemental Health Treatment of PTSD

This Course 3TMH - 'Ethics and Practice of Telemental Health Treatment of PTSD' - is sponsored online by CEU By Net. The course is a compendium of documents primarily created and published in Spring 2020 by multiple branches of the US Government's mental health and addiction treatment delivery system. The research described in this course focuses primarily upon Telemental Health treatment of PTSD through remote Video Teleconferencing. However, the core premises, consents, provider-client interaction, documentation techniques, follow-up, and training methods also apply to other TMH modalities and diagnoses.

The course earns 3.75 Credit Hours in GENERAL credit for FLORIDA MENTAL HEALTH LICENSEES. Earns 3.75 CEUs for Texas LCSWs, LPCs, and LMFTs, and 3.75 CEUs for NAADAC, IC&RC, TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, California CCADE and CADTP, the Florida Certification Board for CAP, and most other mental health and addiction licensing boards. The course awards 2.5 credit hours for California BBS and NBCC. The course was re-approved by EACC for 3.75 PDHs Domain I, II & III, effective May 6, 2024.

Based upon these credentials, the course is accepted by most state boards for behavioral health credit.

The materials in this course are public domain and are written and published by the US Department of Veteran Affairs' National Center for PTSD, the US Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network (ATTC) - South Southwest ATTC located at the University of Texas School of Social Work, and the National Frontier and Rural ATTC.

The course is divided into two sections, with a quiz for each section - both of which must be passed to download the certificate. The first part of this course is the April 2020 research-based document written by the VA's National Center for PTSD, focusing on the ethical and therapeutic approach to delivery of Telemental Health assessment and treatment of Military Veterans with PTSD. The materials provide a description of how to implement telemental health through Clinical Video Teleconferencing (CVT) in which clients are not in the same location as the service provider.

The interaction between client and provider can be transmitted via a tablet, phone, computer, and/or video camera. The publication presents research-based data that demonstrate that remote Video Telemental Health is as effective as in-person, in-office treatment of PTSD, and is sometime more effective. Further, providers and clients are able to remotely accomplish all the essential clinical functions required for successful treatment, including:

• clinical assessment
• trauma-focused psychotherapy including CPT for individuals and groups, Prolonged Exposure (PE), and CBT-I for trauma-based insomnia
• psychoeducational interventions
• cognitive testing
• general psychiatry and medication management

Other areas in this first publication include:
• Alliance, Dropout, and Patient Preferences in CVT Treatment
• Clinical and Practical Considerations for CVT
• Pros and Cons of Telemental Health for PTSD
• Considerations for Risk Assessment
• Additional Resources and activity pertaining to informed consent.


Beyond this first publication on the subject of CVT in the treatment of PTSD, the balance of the course contains planning and documentation checklists and guidance for use in setting up a Telemental Health program regardless of the diagnosis of clients served, including activity needed to ensure ethical practice and confidentiality. Topics addressed include:

• Obtaining Informed Consent for Telemental Health Services

• The use and documentation of the Teach-Back method to promote and ensure the client's understanding of information, homework assignments, and medication protocols provided during the tele-session, including checklists for documentation of interventions and response.

• Guidelines, formats, and checklists for assessing the organization's capacity to deliver telemental health services from a technical and manpower perspective.


GOALS of the course:

1. Recognize the prevalence of untreated PTSD in tribal reservations, rural areas, post-deployment veteran populations, and nationwide due to the Covid-19 pandemic and other situational trauma, and the role that Telemental Health can play in the remote treatment of affected individuals.

2. Know how to remotely implement technical precautions, documentation including informed consent, and intervention approaches which are necessary to ensure the safety, confidentiality, and ethical treatment of clients who receive treatment through remote electronic communication,

3. Learn that the use of Evidence Based Practices (EBPs) in conjunction with home-based Clinical Video Teleconferencing (CVT) is empirically demonstrated to be as effective as - and sometimes more effective than - in-person, in-office treatment of PTSD.

4. Review current 2020 research which demonstrates that all EBP modalities for treatment of PTSD can be effectively delivered through remote home-based video teleconferencing, including Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for individuals and groups, and Prolonged Exposure (PE) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) for individuals.

5. Learn the use and documentation of the Teach-Back method to promote and ensure the client's understanding of instructions, homework assignments, and medication protocols provided during the telehealth session, including checklists for documentation of interventions and client response.

6. With structured checklists and recommended actions, providers learn that essential clinical functions can be effectively performed remotely, including clinical assessment, trauma-focused psychotherapy with individuals and groups, psychoeducational interventions, cognitive testing, general psychiatry, and medication management.

7. Learn the details of what has and has not been changed by SAMHSA in its significant modification of 42 CFR Part 2 in July 2020, pertaining to confidentiality and exchange of clinical information.

8. Learn the step-by-step process of evaluating and putting into place the technical requirements and IT hardware and software systems needed for trouble-free Telemental Health sessions.

Note: You are free to read, download, save, and print the Study Guide(s) and Quiz(zes) for this Course, before deciding to enroll in the course. These course materials are public domain, and CEU By Net is sponsoring the course for CE Credit. You may STUDY THIS COURSE and the quiz AT NO CHARGE. You may enroll in the course at any time. You must take the quiz ONLINE, by logging into your My Home Page , clicking on the course you want to complete, completing the quiz or quizzes required, and submitting the Feedback Form. You will then instantly receive your course completion certificate! For more information on this course - and to see a COPY of the online quiz - click the '+' symbols, below:

Course 3TMH - Guide 1

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Course 3TMH - Guide 2

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Course 5P_A - Part I - Preventing Suicide Tool Kit for High Schools

This Course 5P_A -- Part I of Preventing Suicide, a Tool Kit for High Schools -- presents a comprehensive Risk Management and culturally sensitive approach to PREVENTING primary suicides of students in High Schools as well as a POSTVENTION approach to preventing 'copy cat' or 'contagion' suicides in the surviving student population. The document was originally published in 2012 but is reviewed annually by SAMHSA, and it's currently a featured manual on the SAMHSA website.

This course is sponsored online by CEU By Net. The course earns 5.75 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Mental Health and Addiction Boards including Texas Mental Health Boards, TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, two California Addiction Boards, Florida Certification Board, Florida CE Broker, IC&RC, and NAADAC; EACC for 6.0 PDHs, Domains I, II, III expires June 13, 2025. The course also awards 4 Credit Hours for California BBS and 4 NBCC Hours. Based upon these credentials, the course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

The document for this course is published by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and was prepared by the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) in collaboration with Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), and NASMHPD Research Institute, under contract with SAMHSA, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Rosalyn Blogier, LCSW-C and Dr. Tarsha Wilson, Government Project Officers.

The course has two Study Guides and a quiz for each Study Guide. Each of the steps involved in developing a comprehensive Suicide Prevention Plan for High Schools includes one or more TOOLS which guide the implementation of the given step, including forms, worksheets, fact sheets, guidelines, and handouts for use in training staff and educating parents.

Study Guide 1 focuses upon identifying the legal issues and necessary steps involved in the development of a Suicide Prevention Plan which can meet the needs of students -- including cultural factors and characteristics of families. Each plan must accommodate the staffing and community resources which are available to play specific roles in the plan. The first Study Guide also introduces the Risk Factors, the Protective Factors, and the Warning Signs of the potential for suicide among students, which should be communicated to school administrators, staff, and parents.

The second Study Guide describes the steps and tools necessary to IMPLEMENT the components of school-based suicide prevention plans, including the details of Suicide Risk Assessment and determining the Level of Suicide Risk.


The GOALS of the Course:

1. Access an empirically based Suicide Prevention toolkit with step-by-step tools to implement a multifaceted suicide prevention and postvention program addressing the Risk Management needs and cultures of high school students and their families.

2. Know the characteristics of adolescents who are most at risk for suicidal behavior, including depressed and anxious youth, LGBTQ youth, the victims and perpetrators of bullying, those who are using alcohol and drugs, and those with a familial lifestyle or history which includes violence, SUDs, suicide, and poor parental support of children.

3. Understand the steps and the sequence which are necessary to implement the components of a comprehensive school-based suicide prevention and postvention program, including specific tools to implement these steps -- guidelines, forms, checklists, worksheets, documentation formats and procedures, and fact sheets for program planning, training of staff, and education of parents.

4. Know research-based strategies that can help prevent suicide of students in high schools, including a SUICIDE RISK ASSESSMENT format for evaluating the level of risk of an adolescent student and the approach to working with the student's family -- including parents who are resistant, confused, traumatized, in denial, or impacted by cultural bias and/or the LGBTQ status of their child.

5. Know the indicators which correlate with low, moderate, and high Levels of Risk for Suicide among high school students, and the correlation between SUDs, mental health disorders, family dynamics, cultural elements, and suicidal behavior.

6. Understand how to prioritize and select Suicide Prevention programs and activities that will be effective in individual schools, considering the cultural, ethnic and familial characteristics of the school population.

7. Obtain guidance in how to identify school staff and community partners to play specific roles, necessary Risk Management protocols, and effective ways to generate support for the plan in the school system, among families, and within the community.

8. Learn how to integrate suicide prevention and Risk Management into activities that fulfill other aspects of the school’s mission, such as preventing the abuse of alcohol and other drugs and bullying.


A similar course is offered on this website (Course 6B, After a Suicide: A Tool Kit for Schools -- also published by SAMHSA) which primarily addresses Risk Management RESPONSE following a suicide in a school, including response to younger children in the primary and middle school age group. This Course 5P_A has a different structural format than Course 6B, with more attention to the details of stepwise implementation of a Suicide Prevention and Response Plan -- including working with traumatized and resistant parents -- with an eye to Risk Management.

COMING SOON! Parts II and III of Suicide Prevention: A Tool Kit for Schools.

Note: You are free to read, download, save, and print the Study Guide(s) and Quiz(zes) for this Course, before deciding to enroll in the course. These course materials are public domain, and CEU By Net is sponsoring the course for CE Credit. You may STUDY THIS COURSE and the quiz AT NO CHARGE. You may enroll in the course at any time. You must take the quiz ONLINE, by logging into your My Home Page , clicking on the course you want to complete, completing the quiz or quizzes required, and submitting the Feedback Form. You will then instantly receive your course completion certificate! For more information on this course - and to see a COPY of the online quiz - click the '+' symbols, below:

Course 5P_A - Guide 1- Preventing Suicide Tool Kit for High Schools

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Course 5P_A - Guide 2 - Preventing Suicide Tool Kit for High Schools

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Course 3C - Beyond the Yellow Legal Pad! Assessment and Diagnosis of Children and Adolescents - from Ethics to Practice and Into the Courtroom

FOR BOTH ETHICS AND CLINICAL ASSESSMENT CE CREDIT.




This course earns 3 Clock Hours of CE Credit in either 'ETHICS' or 'ASSESSMENT and DIAGNOSIS', whichever you need. The course is pre-approved or automatically approved for 3 Credit Hours by multiple State and national mental health and addiction licensing and certification boards including Florida CE Broker, Alabama, and Texas mental health, Texas TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, IC&RC, NAADAC, Florida Certification Board, California CAADE and CADTP, and EACC - 3 PDHs Domain III - Expires June 30, 2024 The course also awards 3.0 California BBS CE Hours and 3.0 NBCC Credit Hours.

FLORIDA LICENSEES, PLEASE TAKE NOTE: This revised Course 3C is now separately approved in Florida for 3 clock hours in the ETHICS category, as well as for 3 clock hours in the GENERAL category. Enroll in THIS COURSE if you want to take it for GENERAL credit in Florida. Alternatively, if you are wanting this course for ETHICS credit in Florida, enroll in the course listed BELOW this item in the catalog - i.e., [Florida] Ethics Course 3C' with 'Florida Ethics' in the course title. (These two instances of the course have the same content, but have different internal codes for Florida CE Broker - one for Ethics, and one for General.)

This course is written, copyrighted and published by Marsha Naylor, MA, LPC and CEU by Net. To read about Ms. Naylor's experience and qualifications, please go to 'The Company' on this website's menu bar and click on 'About Us'.


WHAT'S THIS COURSE ABOUT? It addresses the RISK MANAGEMENT issues involved in ASSESSMENT AND DIAGNOSIS of children and adolescents and how to reduce the ethical and legal risk. The course explains the most common CLINICAL errors and ETHICAL blunders which even seasoned professionals can and do make when assessing children and adolescents -- errors which can inpact the correctness of a differential diagnosis and lead to professional, ethical, and legal problems for you, and treatment outcome problems for your client.

Aside from the potential for clinical embarrassment if we make errors in the write-up of an assessment interview or an error in the diagnosis(es), most clinicians do not give much thought to the potential for legal, ethical or other professional repercussions which might result from these routine activities. Nor do they see the development of a treatment plan as a potential for trouble.

Most professionals believe that such things as becoming sexually involved with a client or violating a client's confidentiality are the primary issues which present a potential for ethics violations. They don't realize that 'scope of practice' and 'professional competence' and 'acting in the best interest of the client' are common reasons why providers are disciplined for ethics violations and may be sued for malpractice in a court of law. Further, few realize that the most vulnerable activities which can lead to such allegations are ASSESSMENT, DIAGNOSIS, and TREATMENT PLANNING. Together, these clinical activities are the Achilles Heel for behavioral health providers.

Furthermore, it’s a common assumption that if an assessment (any assessment), treatment plan (any treatment plan), and any reasonable diagnosis are “in the chart” that all is well. Local Program Managers may even audit their charts internally from that perspective. But this, too, has the potential for trouble. Think: ‘Professional Competence’ . . . ‘Ethics’ . . . ‘Scope of Practice’.

This unique course lays bare the oftentimes overlooked 'traps' which even the most experienced clinicians fall into when assessing and diagnosing children and adolescents without a structured assessment format -- placing us at great LEGAL, ETHICAL, and PROFESSIONAL RISK if overlooked. The course presents a clear description of how such issues can arise when we ASSESS 'ON THE FLY', no matter how many years we have been in this business!

Course 3C focuses upon the details of how to perform and DOCUMENT a professionally competent Biopsychosocial Assessment of Children and Adolescents (whether routine or emergency) without the LEGAL, ETHICAL, AND PROFESSIONAL vulnerability which can come back to haunt us long after the fact. Learn why the ETHICAL canons pertaining to Professional Competency, Acting in the Best Interest of the Client, and Scope of Practice are inseparable from how we go about assessing, diagnosing, and documenting treatment of children and adolescents.

Many providers believe that in order to protect a client's confidentiality, the less said the better, when documenting his or her issues, history, diagnosis, and response to treatment. However, this is a misinterpretation of what is meant by 'client confidentiality'.

In fact, structured, detailed assessments are essential to protect ourselves legally and professionally -- from an ETHICS perspective, a PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE perspective, and a PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY perspective. And therefore in this course, we emphasize the need to avoid on-the-fly notations put to a 'yellow legal pad' when assessing and diagnosing children and adolescents, in favor of using a more formal, detailed, STRUCTURED BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL ASSESSMENT format.



The course clarifies the connection between (1) how effectively we perform the task of Assessment and Diagnosis of Children and Adolescents, and (2) the ETHICAL STANDARDS OF PRACTICE – including both demonstration of Professional Competence within Scope of Practice, and responsibility to act in the best interest of the client.

In this course we explain how and why the use of a structured assessment protocol [which addresses and integrates specific issues] is ultimately the only way to assure that we have complied with the PREVAILING STANDARDS OF PROFESSIONAL CARE which are applied to assessment and treatment of children and adolescents with mental health and SUDs issues. We must demonstrate in writing that we have met the ‘ETHICS’ expectation of ‘COMPETENCE’ to ASSESS and TREAT THIS particular child for THESE issues, and that your actions are consistent with the prevailing standards of care for the specific issues.

The bottom line here: Assessment Course 3C addresses serious assessment ERRORS to avoid, which can result in ETHICAL AND LEGAL complications. Understand the legal and professional implications of (a) erroneous or ignored DIAGNOSIS(ES) and (b) failure to RESPOND appropriately to a client’s regression or failure to progress in treatment. This type of clinical thoroughness is particularly crucial when working with children and adolescents who present a potential for HARM TO SELF OR OTHERS.

ADDED BONUS: Get FREE Downloadable prototype assessment forms for Biopsychosocial Assessment, and for Risk Assessment, which the user can tailor to his or her own needs if software to modify pdf documents is available. NOTE: It is important to note that all of the assessment forms within this training course are intended to serve as a prototypical RESOURCE from which users can extract or adapt content for their own programmatic use – including the development of screening instruments and electronic medical records.


Specific Goals of the Course:

1. Learn how the use of a structured Biopsychosocial Assessment format which integrates all assessment findings supports two key expectations of Ethical Practice -- i.e., (1) working within the SCOPE OF PRACTICE of our license (AUTHORIZED and QUALIFIED to do specific work, having appropriate training and a knowledge base in the youth's specific treatment issues), and (2) demonstrating professional COMPETENCE (actions which are consistent with the prevailing standards of professional care for the given situation).

2. Understand the RISK MANAGEMENT and ETHICAL Issues involved in assessing and diagnosing children and adolescents 'on the fly' without a structured Biopsychosocial Assessment format.which assesses both mental health and substance use issues.

3. Know why failure to assess and diagnose children and adolescents using a structured assessment format which taps in to both mental health and SUD issues can result in errors in differential diagnoses and ETHICAL, LEGAL, and PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY for the licensed professional.

4. Learn why detailed written documentation of history, diagnosis(es), and response to treatment is NOT a violation of the principles of 'Client Confidentiality.'

5. Understand how inadvertent omission of clinical details can adversely impact the correctness and scope of the diagnosis (e.g., can miss or ignore the presence of dual mental health and SUD diagnoses) and the details of the treatment plan - resulting in allegations of CLINICAL INCOMPETENCE.

6. Learn which omissions and errors in Biopsychosocial Assessment of Children and Adolescents most often result in legal and professional liability, in the event of an adverse treatment outcome.

7. Understand the need for extra sensitivity to potential or current LGBT issues with children and adolescents, which can significantly affect differential diagnoses..

8. Understand the LEGAL, ETHICAL and PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE implications of (1) erroneous or ignored DIAGNOSIS(ES), particularly the presence of acknowledged or unacknowledged SUD issues and underlying depression, and (2) failure to DOCUMENT the client's response to each treatment issue (whether it be progress, lack of progress, or regression) and (3) failure of the provider to APPROPRIATELY RESPOND to a client’s regression or failure to progress in treatment by formally modifying the treatment plan and documenting the changes in therapeutic intervention.

9. Learn how to spot your own flawed documentation patterns which lead to audit woes, ethical issues, and potential legal problems.

10. Understand the structure and details involved in competent 'ASSESSMENT OF ACUTE RISK' with children and adolescents.

To view the DOCUMENT GO HERE.

To view the QUIZ GO HERE.

Ethics 3D - When Insurance and State Contracts Are Paying the Bill – The Ethics of Treatment Documentation in Today’s World.

This is an ETHICS course copyrighted and published by CEU By Net. This course earns 3 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Boards including Florida and Texas, and for TCBAP-TAAP, IC&RC, NAADAC, California CCADE and CADTP, and Florida Certification Board. EACC 3 PDHs Domain I expires June 30, 2024. It also awards 2.0 CA BBS Hours and 2.0 NBCC Hours. Based upon these credentials, course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

NOTE: Ethics 4D contains the same core material found in this Ethics Course 3D, except that Ethics 4D includes additional material pertaining to the ethics of clinical documentation, plus one additional Credit Hour. Therefore, take either 3D or 4D, but not both.

This course is appropriate for Professional Counselors, LMHCs, LMFTs, Social Workers, Addiction and Substance Abuse Drug and Alcohol Counselors, CEAP providers, and other behavioral health practitioners.

You can VIEW the Study Guides and Quizzes for FREE through the links at the bottom of this course description.

Ethics 3D is an online 2-part SLIDE SHOW with content that's easy to understand and never boring. It addresses in clear language the ETHICAL DILEMMAS and PRESSURES encountered on a daily basis by those whose clients' fees-for-service are paid by insurance, managed care, Employee Assistance Programs, self-insured companies, or other closely monitored state or local contracts which have reduction of healthcare cost as a mandate.

The treatment provided by providers is now, more than ever before, carefully monitored for clear documented evidence of 'the medical necessity of treatment'. No longer considered to be a 'social service', mental health and addiction treatment is carefully monitored in terms of 'increments of service', 'duration of service', and 'medical necessity' for the type of service being provided. These issues are the basis for approval or denial of treatment requests, and the decisions are based upon what is DOCUMENTED in the client's treatment record - assessments, treatment plans, and progress notes.

This course is a close-up view of that sticky issue ... what to write (and not write) in a client's treatment record, from an ETHICS perspective, in this new era of tightly controlled health care costs. How much do you divulge about your ASSESSMENT of the client's DIAGNOSIS(ES), his prognosis, his functional status, and his response to treatment. What's ETHICAL - when the payor is demanding details? What's NECESSARY?

Is such scrutiny legitimate and ethical, or is it an invasion of your (and your client's) privacy? And is it ethical to provide the requested information? Do most states’ licensure standards SUPPORT - or OVERRULE - this type of documentation of a client's treatment information? The answer may surprise you.

GOALS of this course:

1. Understand the ETHICAL AND PRACTICAL impact of CARE MANAGEMENT (a.k.a., Managed Care) upon WHO gets treatment or related services, WHAT treatments and related services they may receive, and HOW MUCH of each intervention is allowed.

2. Identify the ETHICAL ISSUES faced by providers due to the Care Management approach to authorization of behavioral health services - in both the delivery of treatment services AND in the DOCUMENTATION of the Assessment, Diagnosis, and Response to treatment of intervention.

3. Understand the connection between the concept of ‘Medically Necessary Treatment’ and what must be DOCUMENTED in clients’ records, vis-à-vis the professional’s ETHICAL PRECEPTS and LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS.

4. Recognize how these new health care system requirements do in fact mesh and correlate with the longstanding ETHICAL and LEGAL requirements for practicing in the mental health and substance abuse treatment profession.

5. Learn how we can ETHICALLY and LEGALLY accommodate these new service and documentation requirements, while simultaneously meeting the requirements of our Provider Agreements.

6. Learn some creative, alternative treatment options which can lessen the provider's ETHICAL concerns when faced with denial of ‘traditional services’.

To view Study Guide 1 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 2 now CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 1 CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 2 CLICK HERE

Course 7R - The Essentials of Risk Management

This Course 7R—The Essentials of Risk Management—is written and published online by CEU By Net. The course earns 7.5 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Mental Health and Addiction Boards including Texas and Florida Mental Health Licensing Boards, Texas Certification Board (TCB -TCBAP-TAAP), NAADAC, IC&RC, Florida CE Broker, California CCAPP, CADTP, and CCADE; Florida Certification Board. Approved by EACC for 7.5 PDHs—Domains I & II, effective May 1, 2023. Also awards 5 Credit Hours for California BBS Hours and 5 NBCC Hours. Based upon these credentials, the course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

This course presents a comprehensive approach to establishing an in-house Risk Management program for the Corporate and Military clients of EAPs, and for the DESIGN and SUPERVISION of Behavioral Health treatment programs and their professional staff (social work, counseling, marriage and family therapy, and addiction professionals).

The course presents the essential processes involved in Risk Management within the workplace—up-front Prospective Prevention Planning and after-the-fact Retrospective Review and Correction. The emphasis is upon identification of the HUMAN FACTORS and the SYSTEMIC and PROGRAM DESIGN ISSUES which potentially contribute(d) to Critical and Adverse Incidents in the workplace, and the development of a PREVENTION or CORRECTION plan.

The course includes numerous vignettes which graphically demonstrate the necessity of Risk Management and the problems which organizations create and face when they fail to establish Risk Management Prevention and Correction Plans. The course also includes a deidentified Internal Risk Management Death Review, which demonstrates the principle of 'leaving no stone unturned' when seeking the Contributing Factors in Critical Incidents.

This course also demonstrates a core philosophy which is derived from the teaching of the Joint Commission—'Your worst day is an Opportunity for Improvement.' Examples of this philosophy are provided through a detailed case study of a suicide in a highly-respected Dual Diagnosis Supported Housing Program, which was followed by an intensive internal Retrospective Risk Management Review. The Review, although at times emotionally painful to both management and staff, identified and corrected several program design and staff management issues which had been heretofore unrecognized. The ultimate result was a significant positive impact upon the quality and safety of program operation.

This course provides practical tools for EAPs and Behavioral Health Managers to use in the process of Risk Management Prevention and Correction of Adverse and Critical Incidents, including a detailed checklist-based approach to uncovering the Human Factors in Critical and Adverse Incidents. Specific examples of both types of Incidents are provided.

In addition to Critical Incidents, we include how to prevent and correct Adverse Incidents—those negative Performance and Outcome indicators and Compliance Violations that can 'sink the ship.' Monitoring of these indicators is essential in the retention of contracts and funding sources in any work organization—whether that be a Detox Unit or a Community MHMR Center or an IT or Social Media giant, or the US Military, or a carpet manufacturer, or a Purina Cat Food Factory.


The Goals for Learning:

1. Learn the definition, the working philosophy, and the process of Risk Management in Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and in DESIGN and SUPERVISION of Mental Health and Addiction Treatment programs and their staff.

2. Obtain a clear perspective of establishing and conducting an ongoing Risk Management program, from the review of multiple case studies and examples of Critical and Adverse Incidents in the EAP workplace and in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Programs.

3. Understand that when Critical and Adverse Incidents occur, we must look beyond the errors committed by individuals, to include an unbiased assessment of systemic and program design flaws which contributed to the Critical or Adverse event.

4. Learn how to set up and operate the Risk Management Committees from the first step -- identification of the 'INHERENT RISKS' of operating the business.

5. Understand the need for and the process of PROSPECTIVE RISK MANAGEMENT when contemplating PENDING changes in the workplace

6. Understand the details of performing a Retrospective Review and analysis of Critical and Adverse Incidents which have occurred in the workplace, focusing upon the identification of the HUMAN FACTORS and the SYSTEM DESIGN FACTORS which have caused or contributed to the Incident.

7. From specific examples, learn how to establish Contingency Response Programs to address unpreventable catastrophic and seriously disruptive events WITHIN organizations, with the goal of reducing the IMPACT and speeding the RECOVERY from the incident.

8. From specific examples, learn how to establish Community-Wide Contingency Response Plans to address unpreventable catastrophic events within the community-- with the goal of reducing the IMPACT, speeding the RECOVERY, improving the community's RESPONSE to given catastrophes, and moving forward with an improved Contingency Response Plan.

9. From specific examples, learn about the collaborative partnership between EAPs, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Veterans Affairs from a Risk Management perspective, as well as the role of EAPs in consultation and coaching with organizational management—a sound model for Risk Management in all Behavioral Health programs.


Author and Publisher:

This course is written, published, and copyrighted by Marsha Watson Naylor, MA, LPC, CEU By Net—Pendragon Online LLC, Austin, TX. Ms. Naylor is a former Assistant Deputy Commissioner for the Texas Department of MHMR and has seventeen years experience as a national level consultant to multiple organizations including Behavioral Health Provider Networks, the Managed Care Industry, State Legislators and Advocacy groups, the Annie E Casey Foundation, the Center for Health Care Strategies, and other mental health and addiction organizations. She also has twenty years' experience in program administration and consultation in the mental health and addiction fields, for inpatient and outpatient Mental Health and Addiction services at the state and local level.

Note: You are free to read, download, save, and print the Study Guide(s) and Quiz(zes) for this Course, before deciding to enroll in the course. These course materials are public domain, and CEU By Net is sponsoring the course for CE Credit. You may STUDY THIS COURSE and the quiz AT NO CHARGE. You may enroll in the course at any time. You must take the quiz ONLINE, by logging into your My Home Page , clicking on the course you want to complete, completing the quiz or quizzes required, and submitting the Feedback Form. You will then instantly receive your course completion certificate! For more information on this course - and to see a COPY of the online quiz - click the '+' symbols, below:

Course 7R_Essentials of Risk Management - Study Guide

Click here to view this study material. Click here to view and print the quiz you will take for this material.

Ethics 4D - Ethics of Treatment Documentation and Other Ethical Dilemmas When Insurance and State Contracts Are Paying the Bill

This is an Ethics Course copyrighted and published by CEU By Net. This course is sponsored online by CEU By Net and earns 4 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Boards including Florida and Texas, TCBAP-TAAP, IC&RC, NAADAC, California CCADE and CADTP, and Florida Certification Board. EACC 4 PDHs Domain I, II, III expires June 30, 2024 The course also awards 3.0 CA BBS Hours and 3.0 NBCC Hours. Based upon these credentials, course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

NOTE: Ethics 4D contains the same core material as the 3 credit-hour Ethics Course 3D, except that 4D includes additional material regarding these ethical issues, plus one additional Credit Hour. And so take either 3D or 4D, but not both.

This course is appropriate for Professional Counselors, LMHCs, LMFTs, Social Workers, Addiction and Substance Abuse Drug and Alcohol Counselors, CEAP providers, and other behavioral health practitioners.

Ethics 4D is a self-paced 3-part online slide show with content that's easy to understand and never boring - regarding the ETHICAL DILEMMAS and PRESSURES encountered on a daily basis by those whose clients' fees-for-service are paid by insurance, managed care, Employee Assistance Programs, self-insured companies, or other closely monitored state or local contracts which have reduction of healthcare cost as a mandate.

Behavioral health care services is now, more than ever before, carefully monitored for clear documented evidence of 'the medical necessity of treatment'. No longer considered to be a 'social service', mental health and addiction treatment is carefully monitored in terms of 'increments of service', 'duration of service', and 'medical necessity' for the type of service being provided. These issues are the basis for approval or denial of treatment requests, and the decisions are based upon what is DOCUMENTED in the client's treatment record - assessments, treatment plans, and progress notes.

This course is a close-up view of that sticky issue ... what to write (and not write) in a client's treatment record, from an ETHICS perspective, in this new era of tightly controlled health care costs. How much do you divulge about your ASSESSMENT of the client's DIAGNOSIS(ES), his prognosis, his functional status, and his response to treatment? What's ETHICAL - when the payor is demanding details? What's NECESSARY?

Is such scrutiny legitimate and ethical, or is it an invasion of your (and your client's) privacy? And is it ethical to provide the requested information? Do most states’ licensure standards SUPPORT - or OVERRULE - this type of documentation of a client's treatment information? The answer may surprise you.

GOALS of this course:

1. Understand the ETHICAL AND PRACTICAL impact of CARE MANAGEMENT (a.k.a., Managed Care) upon WHO gets treatment or related services, WHAT treatments and related services they may receive, and HOW MUCH of each intervention is allowed.

2. Identify the ETHICAL ISSUES faced by providers due to the Care Management approach to authorization of behavioral health services - in both the delivery of treatment services AND in the DOCUMENTATION of the Assessment, Diagnosis, and Response to treatment of intervention.

3. Understand the connection between the concept of ‘Medically Necessary Treatment’ and what must be DOCUMENTED in clients’ records, vis-à-vis the professional’s ETHICAL PRECEPTS and LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS.

4. Recognize how these new health care system requirements do in fact mesh and correlate with the longstanding ETHICAL and LEGAL requirements for practicing in the mental health and substance abuse treatment profession.

5. Learn how we can ETHICALLY and LEGALLY accommodate these new service and documentation requirements, while simultaneously meeting the requirements of our Provider Agreements.

6. Learn some creative, alternative treatment options which can lessen the provider's ETHICAL concerns when faced with denial of ‘traditional services’.

7. Review and understand additional ethics-related issues involved in the treatment of clients under a managed system of care - such as the health care insurers' contractual right to explore the PROVIDER's effectiveness and adherence to best practices in the treatment of individual clients, through review of the OUTCOME of an individual's treatment or intervention.

To view Study Guide 1 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 2 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 3 now CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 1 for free, CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 2 for free, CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 3 for free, CLICK HERE

Course 2B - 'They're Coming to Audit WHEN?' - a.k.a, 'What Can Go WRONG in That Chart?'

This course is copyrighted and published by Marsha Naylor, MA, LPC, CEU By Net, Pendragon Associates LLC. The course earns 2.75 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Boards including Florida, Texas, and Alabama, TCBAP-TAAP, IC&RC, NAADAC, California CCADE and CADTP, and Florida Certification Board. EACC 2.75 PDHs Domain I expires June 30, 2024 It also awards 1.75 CA BBS Hours and 1.75 NBCC Hours.

Based upon these credentials, the course credits are accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

This is a PDF formatted slide show course which addresses the details of effective documentation in client records, within a Managed System of Care. This includes the newly forming ACA Health Plans as well as any other COST-CONTROLLED mental health or addiction funding arrangement or contract. And it applies to both public and private providers, unless their work is strictly private pay.

Want to pass that TREATMENT RECORD AUDIT? Want to avoid RECOUPMENT of claims payments already paid to you, when your records are audited? Want to avoid embarrassment and anxiety when the MCO calls for a client's record, or their auditors show up unannounced at your door? This course tells you how.

Course 2B clearly illustrates 12 problematic 'documentation syndromes' which will sabotage even the best and most experienced clinicians - including the 'POORLY DOCUMENTED LEVEL OF CARE’ Syndrome, the ‘ZOMBIE CLIENT’ Syndrome, the ‘PERPETUAL CARE’ Syndrome, the ‘ANY-PATIENT ITP’ Syndrome, the ‘FAILURE TO MODIFY’ Syndrome, and several more. We tell you how to avoid those 12 deadly documentation problems - no matter which type of assessment, counseling or treatment setting you're in, if you must justify what you do with your clients.

This self-paced slide show describes in plain language what's 'DIFFERENT' about how we must DOCUMENT both ASSESSMENT and TREATMENT in mental health and AOD client records, compared to how we may have been trained, if we are working within a Health Care Reform environment. We give you useful and do-able tips on how to audit your own records - so that you are ready BEFORE the MCO, State auditor, or other contract manager arrives at your door or calls for a record (which is called a 'desk audit').

This popular course also provides a clear explanation about HOW managed care contractors make pre- or post-authorization decisions to approve or deny your requests for treatment OR your submitted claims, based upon your assessment and documentation of the treatment your client needs. We are very clear about the nature of WHAT you must write in the client's record to support that authorization, in an entirely ethical manner.

GOALS of This Course:

1. Know the Goals and Issues Associated With the Conversion to Managed Care (Health Care Reform)

2. Be Aware of the Ethical Issues Which Health Care Reform Brings to Providers When Requesting Authorization, and When Delivering and Documenting Assessment, Treatment and Response to Treatment.

3. Understand the Four CORE PRINCIPLES Which Govern Care Management's 'Medical Necessity' and 'Level of Care' Decisions About the Need for Treatment ..... and How This Meshes with Ethical Requirements for Treatment Professionals

4. Know Specific Approaches to Documentation In Client Records Under a 'Care Managed' Contact, i.e., How to Avoid 12 Problematic 'Documentation Syndromes' Which Can Sabotage Even the Most Experienced Clinicians.

To view Study Guide 1 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 2 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 3 now CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 1 for free, CLICK HERE.
To view and print QUIZ 2 for free, CLICK HERE.
To view and print QUIZ 3 for free, CLICK HERE.

Course 2C - Introduction to Professional & Clinical Issues in Managed Care - Necessary Shifts in Program Design and Treatment Approach

This course is written, copyrighted, and published online by CEU By Net and earns 2 Clock Hours of credit for multiple State Boards including Florida, Texas, and Alabama, TCBAP-TCB-TAAP, IC&RC, NAADAC, California CCADE and CADTP, and Florida Certification Board. EACC 2 PDHs Domain I expires June 30, 2024. Also earns 2 NBCC Hours and 2 CA BBS Hours.

Based upon these credentials, this course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

This course is appropriate for both Mental Health and Chemical Dependency Treatment Providers - Counselors, Social Workers, LMFTs, etc..

Some of this course's material overlaps Course 2B material (related to managed care goals, how managed care companies THINK, and how we have to change what we write in treatment records) . . . but then the course moves ahead to include professional, clinical, and programmatic CHANGES in store for professionals who are working under a Managed Care Provider Agreement. Of particular importance: We include specific, practical clinical examples of the 4 Core Concepts that guide and direct the Care Management process for approval or denial of treatment requests.

You can VIEW the Study Guides and Quizzes for FREE through the links at the bottom of this course description.

GOALS:

1. Obtain an Overview of the Basic Goals of Health Care Reform (aka, Managed Care), 'Why Are They Doing This To Us?'

2. Understand the Impact of the New Healthcare Industry's Goals Upon Us (The Providers) and Our Clients..

3. Learn To Think Like a Care Manager: Understand the * FOUR CORE CONCEPTS Which Drive Those 'Level Of Care' (LOC) Decisions, and Document Accordingly.

4. Understand How the Insurance Company or Plan Administrator's RISK Affects Providers In Their Professional Operations -- The Positives, The Challenges, and Examples of Creative Service and Treatment Approaches.

5. Review 'Provider Networks' As A Way to Survive the Major Health Care Shifts, Through 'Step-Down' and 'Step-Up' Referrals, and Sharing the Task of Service Delivery


* Note: The 'Four Core Concepts' have been mentioned briefly in other lessons .... but in this lesson we go into more detail about what they are:

1. Medical Necessity – Is the Treatment Needed to Improve, Maintain, or Prevent Deterioration?

2. Current Functionality – Diagnosis is Not Enough!

3. Treatment Goals & Interventions – Do They Match the Diagnosis and Functionality That Is Described in the Assessment and Elsewhere?

4. Progress – Is the Client Responding to Treatment, and Likely to Benefit with More?


Are you interested in this material, but want more credits than this course offers - and more information? Some of this material appears in MiniCourse 3A (3 credit hours total), and in FlexiCourse 5A (5 credit hours).


To view Study Guide 1 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 2 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 3 now CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 1 for free, CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 2 for free, CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 3 for free, CLICK HERE

Course 3B - The Big Transition in the AOD Field: Managed Care, the ACA, Justifying Need for Treatment - Oh How It's Changed!

This RECENTLY REVISED and expanded Course 3B focuses primarily upon addiction and SUDs treatment issues in the Health Care Reform environment.

The course is approved for 5 clock hours of CE credit by multiple State Boards including Texas and Florida, and by TCBAP-TAAP, IC&RC, California CCADE and CADTP, NAADAC, and the Florida Certification Board (FCB). EACC 5 PDHs Domain I expires June 30, 2024 It also earns 3.25 CA BBS Hours, and 3.25 NBCC Hours. Based upon these credentials, this course is accepted by most state boards for multiple licenses.

This course is authored and copyrighted by Marsha Naylor, MA, LPC, CEU By Net, Pendragon Associates LLC. See bio in site's 'About Us' page.

With the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as the springboard, we explore the intent and the impact of Managed Care Plans upon AOD treatment providers and their clients. The issues we consider include how to work effectively with the Care Management process, including the key features of clinical documentation which ultimately determine approval or denial of our treatment requests.

We also discuss one of the more controversial approaches to implementation of the ACA, now being piloted by several ACA Plans around the country - i.e., 'Vertical Integration of Care'. In Vertical Integration, physical health and behavioral health providers deliver and coordinate treatment to the patient "under one umbrella" - likely under the direction of a Primary Care Physician. In such scenarios, a Bundled Payment may be made to the treatment group, which is then shared by all providers involved in the care episode.

In addition, this course addresses the 'nitty gritty' of:

-- the major CHANGES in SA-CD programming, brought about by Managed Care in general, and

-- the traditional practices which no longer have a place in the new "scheme of things", as the Health Plan administrators see it.

-- the 'admission criteria' for the more intensive levels of care, and the discharge criteria from same

-- the interventions which are viewed as the most effective in bringing about stabilization and continued progress,

-- the type of written documentation that is needed to demonstrate the 'medical necessity' of specific treatments, and the justification for continuation of those treatments

-- the role of diagnosis and functionality in determining the 'medical need' for treatment, and

the significance of relapse, progress, or lack of progress.

This course is appropriate for chemical dependency counselors, social workers, mental health counselors, marriage and family therapists, case managers, rehabilitation workers, EAP providers, school psychologists and counselors, , and others who work with persons who have AOD issues which need assessment, treatment, or referral for same.

FOR EAP COUNSELORS who may or may not be delivering the actual AOD treatment for their clients (in many programs, you will be referring and ensuring continuity rather than treating), it is nevertheless critical that you document your client’s need for treatment in the same thorough and clinically acceptable way that the treatment program must do. Otherwise, the insurance company or other behavioral health administrator will focus upon the disparity in the EAP record vs. the treatment record, and approval for services may then be at risk.

Offers a bird's eye view of how ASSESSMENT of the client's NEED FOR TREATMENT must be documented to secure an authorization, and HOW the treatment or interventions must be delivered and documented under managed systems of care ..... and how to CONSTRUCTIVELY ADAPT to these changes when it's ethically possible.

You can VIEW the Study Guides and Quizzes for FREE through the links at the bottom of this course description.

GOALS of This Course:

1. Understand the main features of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and how they affect addiction professionals, AOD clients, and referral patterns for various modalities of treatment.

2. Know the essential clinical shifts imposed upon the AOD treatment professional and traditional CD programming, under a managed system of care.

3. Understand the changing expectations for documentation in service records.

4. Know some workable and creative service options which may be negotiated with health care contractors - and how to maximize the provider's autonomy in referral and treatment decisions.

5. Know how AOD treatment and intervention programs and individual service plans are designed, within the new health care reform environment, and what will likely be approved by the contractor.

6. Understand HOW the health care contractors make those controversial treatment DECISIONS for substance abusing and chemically dependent individuals - and HOW TO ASK for 'WHAT' in terms of services and/or referral for your clients with AOD issues.

7. Learn about 'Vertical Integration of Care' - the major shift in store for many mental health and AOD providers - in terms of how 'care teams' are likely to be formed, who's in charge, and how they will be paid (Hint: One check from insurance, to be shared by ALL who participated in the care of the client).

>br> Course 3B presents some specialized treatment and case management scenarios which can be discussed with an MCO or other contractor for services, which can provide effective services and treatment to recidivistic AOD clients, under a 'Care Management' system.

Also provides an understanding of HOW the health care contractors make those controversial treatment DECISIONS for substance abusing and chemically dependent individuals - and HOW TO ASK for 'WHAT' in terms of services and/or referral for your clients with AOD issues. Maximize your client’s chances of getting what he or she actually needs, based upon competent assessment in a new health care environment.

For EAP workers who may or may not be delivering the actual AOD treatment for their clients (in many programs, you will be referring and ensuring continuity rather than treating), it is nevertheless critical that you document your client’s need for treatment in the same thorough and clinically acceptable way that the treatment program must do. Otherwise, the insurance company or other behavioral health administrator will focus upon the disparity in the EAP record vs. the treatment record, and approval for services may then be at risk.

We also present clear 1-2-3 guidance on how to DOCUMENT both your assessment and the services you deliver under a managed system of care – and an introduction to RECOUPMENT of funds already paid to you (which typically occurs due to inadequate DOCUMENTATION OF SERVICES in client records). The course explains how to AUDIT your own professional documentation, so that it fits in well with the new CARE MANAGEMENT or Utilization Review (UR) process.

Some material in this course is included in MiniCourses 1B and 1C and elsewhere, but this course does it from the AOD perspective.

THE GOALS OF THIS COURSE:

The goals of Course 3B focus upon managing change within the traditional chemical and substance dependency culture under managed systems of care, i.e., understanding how it affects our interpretation of ‘need for treatment’ and our interventions to promote sobriety.

1. Understanding the New Managed Care Treatment Contracts and How They Affect Us and Our Clients.

2. The Essential Clinical Shifts Imposed Upon the CD Treatment Professional and Traditional CD Programming, Under a Care Management System

3. Changing Expectations for Documentation in Service Records.

4. Know Some Workable and Creative Service Options Which CD Treatment Professionals May Negotiate with Health Care Contractors, Given the Provider’s Greater Autonomy In Referral and Treatment Decisions.

To view Study Guide 1 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 2 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 3 now CLICK HERE
To view Study Guide 4 now CLICK HERE
To view and print QUIZ 1 (which follows Study Guide 2), CLICK HERE.
To view and print QUIZ 2 CLICK HERE.
To view and print QUIZ 3 for free, CLICK HERE.