Code of Maine Rules › 02 - DEPARTMENT OF PROFESSIONAL AND FINANCIAL REGULATION › 514 - BOARD OF COUNSELING PROFESSIONALS LICENSURE › Chapter 1 - DEFINITIONS › Section 514-1-1 - Definitions

Current through 2024-29, July 17, 2024
As used in the rules of the Board of Counseling Professionals
				  Licensure, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the
				  following meanings:
1. ACPE. "ACPE"
				means Association for Clinical Pastoral Education.
2. Board."Board" means the Board of
				Counseling Professionals Licensure.
3. AMFTRB. "AMFTRB" means Association of
				Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards.
4.CACREP. "CACREP" means Council for
				Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs.
5. Client. "Client" means any person who is
				currently receiving counseling or has previously received counseling for any
				amount of time from a licensed or registered counselor. For purposes of the
				board's rules, "counseling" includes marital and family therapy
				services.
6. Clinical counseling
				experience [applicable to LCPCs, LMFTs and Pastoral Counselors]. "Clinical
				counseling experience" means the diagnosis and treatment of mental health
				disorders through the application of procedures of counseling on a full- or
				part-time basis in an appropriate professional environment including, but not
				limited to a hospital, mental health center, counselor education program,
				university counseling center or private practice of professional counseling.
				Clinical counseling experience also includes supervision of counseling and
				related learning and professional activities.
7. COAMFTE. "COAMFTE" means Commission on
				Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education.
8. Contact hours. For purposes of continuing
				education, "contact hours" means the number of actual hours spent in direct
				participation between learner and instructor, supervisor or facilitator. Time
				devoted to preparation for activities, independent study, assignments and
				socializing is not included. For academic class work, one 50 minute class
				meeting three times per week or one 21/12 hour class meeting once per week for
				15 weeks equals 45 contact hours.
9. Continuing education. "Continuing
				education" means a planned educational experience directly related to the
				theory and practice of professional counseling that is designed to promote the
				development of knowledge and skills in the profession.
10. CORE. "CORE" means Council on
				Rehabilitation Education.
11.
				Counselingexperience [applicable to licensed professional counselors].
				"Counseling experience" means the application of procedures of counseling on a
				full- or part-time basis in an appropriate professional environment including,
				but not limited to a hospital, school, mental health center, counselor
				education program, university counseling center or private practice of
				professional counseling. Counseling experience also includes supervision of
				counseling and related learning and professional activities.
11-A. Counselor. "Counselor" means a person
				who holds a license or registration issued by the board, or a person who
				engages in activities for which a license is required by
				 32 MRSA
				§13851(4-A).
12.Direct clinical contact hours. "Direct
				clinical contact hours" means the specific amount of time spent in a clinical
				counseling capacity with clients doing individual, group, family or couples
				counseling.
12-A. Direct
				counseling. "Direct counseling" means the specific amount of time spent in a
				counseling capacity with clients doing individual, group, family or couples
				counseling.
13. Documented proof.
				"Documented proof" of an academic degree means an official college or
				university transcript documenting all coursework and training received by the
				applicant from the institution. If the transcript does not indicate the number
				of contact hours and hours of face-to-face supervision in an internship
				program, the institution must provide a letter documenting the number of hours
				earned by the applicant.
14.
				Individual supervision. Except as otherwise permitted by the board's rules,
				"individual supervision" means supervision in which the approved supervisor is
				physically present with the supervisee on a one-to-one basis and either
				discussing or observing the supervisee's practice.
15. NBCC. "NBCC" means National Board for
				Certified Counselors.
15-A.  Peer
				Consultation. "Peer consultation" means the voluntary relationship between
				professionals of relatively equal expertise or status, wherein the peer
				consultant offers his or her information or advice on an individual case or
				problem for use by the peer consultee as the consultee deems
				appropriate.
16. Quarter-hour
				equivalent. "Quarter-hour equivalent" means 2/3 of a semester hour.
17. Regionally accredited. "Regionally
				accredited" means that the educational institution is accredited by a regional
				institutional accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of
				Education.
18.Relevant professional
				and continuing education experience. "Relevant professional and continuing
				education experience" means a professional program, seminar, workshop or formal
				graduate course work in a nationally or regionally accredited institution
				consisting of at least one contact clock hour which provides specific
				knowledge, skills and abilities in the professional field of counseling. These
				may be offered at a professional convention, conference, workshop or as an
				independent program for a fee or free.
19. Sexual activity. "Sexual activity" means
				the conduct described in Section
				1(19)(A) and
				(B) of this chapter, to wit:
A. Level 1 sexual activity consists of any
				conduct by a counselor that is overtly sexual or may be reasonably interpreted
				as overtly sexual, even when initiated or consented to by the client or other
				person described in Chapter 8-A, Section 4 of the board's rules, including but
				not limited to:
(1) Sexual intercourse or
				genital to genital contact;
(2) Oral
				to genital contact;
(3) Oral to
				anal contact or genital to anal contact;
(4) Kissing in a sexual manner (e.g., kissing
				on the lips);
(5) Any touching of a
				body part for any purpose other than appropriate comfort, or where the client
				or other person has refused or has withdrawn consent; or
(6) Performing or offering to perform any
				service, or providing or offering to provide any consideration, of any kind in
				exchange for sexual favors.