Section 17-403 - Requirements for certified associate counselor - Alcohol and drug. - Maryland Statutes

§ 17-403. Requirements for certified associate counselor - Alcohol and drug.
 

(a)  In general.- Except as provided in § 17-405 of this subtitle, to qualify as a certified associate counselor-alcohol and drug, an applicant shall: 

(1) Hold a bachelor's degree from an accredited educational institution approved by the Board in a health and human services counseling field or have completed a program of studies judged by the Board to be substantially equivalent in subject matter and extent of training to such a program of studies; 

(2) Have completed not less than 3 years, with a minimum of 2,000 hours of clinically supervised experience in alcohol and drug counseling approved by the Board, 2 years of which shall have been completed after the award of the bachelor's degree; 

(3) Have a minimum of 21 credit hours in alcohol and drug counselor training, including instruction in: 

(i) Medical aspects of chemical dependency; 

(ii) Group counseling; 

(iii) Individual counseling; 

(iv) Family counseling; 

(v) Assessment and treatment planning; 

(vi) Ethics for alcohol and drug counselors; 

(vii) Human development; 

(viii) Abnormal psychology; and 

(ix) Courses pertaining to counselor core functions of screening, intake, orientation, case management, crisis intervention, education and prevention, referral, consultation, reports and record keeping, and special alcohol and drug dependency topics; and 

(4) (i) Practice alcohol and drug counseling under the supervision of a certified professional counselor-alcohol and drug or another health care provider approved by the Board; or 

(ii) Provide alcohol and drug counseling as an employee of an agency or facility that is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations or that is certified under Title 8, Subtitle 4 of the Health - General Article. 

(b)  Examination.- Except as otherwise provided in this title, the applicant shall pass an examination approved by the Board under this title. 
 

[2008, ch. 36, § 6; ch. 505, § 2; ch. 630; 2009, ch. 60, § 5; 2010, ch. 708.]