Mississippi Administrative Code › Title 30 - Professions and Occupations › Part 1903 - RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS › Chapter 1 - General Provisions › Rule 30-1903-1.2 - DEFINITIONS

Current through June 25, 2024
As used in these Rules and Regulations and in the Mississippi
				  Marriage and Family Therapy Act of 1997, the following words and terms shall
				  have the meaning ascribed herein below:
A. "Act" is the Mississippi
Marriage
				and Family Therapy Licensure Act of 1997,
Title 73, Chapter 54 of the
				Mississippi Code of 1972, as amended.
B. "Advertise" means, but is not limited to,
				issuing or causing to be distributed any card, sign or device to any person;
				causing, permitting or allowing any sign or marking on or in any building;
				broadcasting by radio or television; or advertising on the internet or by any
				other means designed to secure public attention.
C. "AAMFT" means the American Association for
				Marriage and Family Therapy.
D.
				"Client contact hours" means both direct client contact hours as defined below
				and administrative and supportive client associated hours as defined by the
				individual accredited Institute of Higher Learning.
E. Clinical Supervision" means the direct
				clinical review, for the purposes of training or teaching by a supervisor, of
				the supervisee's interaction with a client.
F. "COAMFTE" means the Commission on
				Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education.
G. "Code of Ethics" means the current Code of
				Ethics of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy.
H. "Completed Application" means the official
				marriage and family therapy application prescribed by the Board with the
				signature of the applicant, fees and all supporting information and documents
				requested by the Board.
I. "Contact
				Hour" means one 60-minute clock hour of an approved educational activity
				offered by an approved provider with no less than 50 minutes of instructional
				content within the 60 minutes.
J.
				"Consultation" or "Conferring" means a professional collaborative relationship
				between a licensed marriage and family therapist and a qualified licensed
				individual or other professional of relative equal expertise or status in which
				the other licensed individual or professional makes an assessment based on
				information supplied by the licensed marriage and family therapist and jointly
				develops a written treatment plan with the licensed marriage and family
				therapist which indicates the responsibility of each professional for
				implementing elements of the plan, updating the plan, and assessing the
				client's progress.
K. "Continuing
				Education" means programs and/or activities designed to and have the content
				intended to enhance the general or specialized marriage and family therapy
				practice, values, skills, ethics and/or knowledge.
The primary objective of continuing education must be to
				  maintain and improve the quality of professional services in marriage and
				  family therapy provided to the public; maintain and improve the therapist's
				  knowledge of current research, techniques, and practice; and provide other
				  resources which will improve skill and competence in marriage and family
				  therapy.
L. "Direct Client
				Contact" means face-to-face interaction, either in-person or through a secure
				video conferencing platform between the therapist and an individual, couple, or
				family.
M. "Direct Clinical Review"
				means board approved supervision that consists of case related interactive face
				to face, either in-person or through a secure video conferencing platform
				meeting between the supervisor and supervisee.
N. "Examination" means the test or exam
				endorsed or prescribed by the Association for Marital and Family Therapy
				Regulatory Boards.
O. Face-to-Face
				Supervision" means supervision conducted by a supervisor, either in person or
				through a secure video conferencing platform, of the person being supervised
				for the purpose of carrying out the supervision functions described in Part
				1903, Chapter 2, Rule
				2.2(C)(3)
				(i).
P. "Good Moral Character"
				shall have the meaning set forth in Part 1901, Chapter 2, Rule
				2.1 of these Rules and
				Regulations.
Q. "Group Supervision"
				means a minimum of three (3) and no more than eight (8) marriage and family
				supervisees or associates in a clinical setting during the supervision hour. A
				supervision hour is fifty (50) minutes.
R. "Individual Supervision" shall mean a
				maximum of two (2) marriage and family supervisees or associates in a clinical
				setting during the supervision hour. A supervision hour is fifty (50)
				minutes.
S. "Institution of Higher
				Education" means any college or university which is accredited by a regional
				accrediting body recognized by the United States Department of Education or a
				substantially equivalent foreign institution.
T. "Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
				(LMFT)" means a person to whom a license has been issued under the Mississippi
				Code of 1972 as amended, Section
				73-53-8, which license is in force
				and not suspended or revoked as of the particular time in question.
U. "Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy
				Associate (LMFTA)" means a person to whom a marriage and family therapy
				associate license has been issued under the Mississippi Code of 1972 as
				amended, Section
				73-53-8, which license is in force
				and not suspended or revoked as of the particular time in question.
V. "Live Supervision" consists of a case
				related interactive face-to-face, either inperson or through a secure video
				conferencing platform meeting between the supervisor and supervisee, during
				which time the supervisor is physically or virtually present in the clinical
				setting with the supervisee.
W.
				"Marriage and Family Therapy" means the rendering of professional therapy
				services to individuals, families or couples, singly or in groups, and involves
				the professional application of psychotherapeutic and family systems theories
				and techniques in the delivery of therapy services to those persons.
X. "Offering" means an organized learning
				experience or course planned and designed to enhance knowledge, skills, and
				attitudes related to marriage and family therapy.
Y. "Person" means any individual, firm,
				corporation, partnership, organization or body politic.
Z. "Practice of Marriage and Family Therapy"
				means the rendering of professional marriage and family therapy services, to
				individuals, couples or families, singly or in groups, whether those services
				are offered directly to the general public or through organizations, either
				public or private, for a fee, monetary or otherwise. This involves assessment,
				diagnosis, identification, evaluation and treatment of emotional problems and
				conditions, whether cognitive, affective, or behavioral, resolving
				intrapersonal and interpersonal conflicts, and attempting to change perception,
				attitudes, and behaviors, all within the context of human relationship systems.
				Marriage and Family therapy includes, without being limited to, individual,
				group, couple, sexual, family and divorce therapy. It involves an applied
				understanding of the dynamics of marriage and family systems, including
				individual psychodynamics, the use of assessment instruments that evaluate
				individuals, couples and family members with regard to marriage and family
				functioning, and the use of psychotherapy and counseling.
AA. "Use of title or description of" means to
				hold oneself out to the public as a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
				(LMFT) or Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Associate (LMFTA) through means
				of stating it on signs, mailboxes, address plates, stationery, announcements,
				calling cards, the internet or other instruments of professional
				identification.
Miss. Code
				  Ann. §§
										73-53-11(1) (c) and
				  (j),
				  73-54-5,
				  73-54-11, and
				  73-54-19 (Supp.
				  2011).