North Carolina Administrative Code › Title 21 - OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS › Chapter 68 - ADDICTIONS SPECIALIST PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE BOARD › Section .0500 - ETHICAL PRINCIPLES OF CONDUCT FOR THE SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER PROFESSIONAL › Section 68 .0509 - CLIENT RELATIONSHIPS

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 2, July 15, 2024
(a) The substance
				use disorder professional shall not enter into a client-professional
				relationship with members of the professional's immediate family. For the
				purpose of this Rule "immediate family" means spouse, parent, sibling, child,
				grandparent, grandchild, stepchild, stepparent, parent-in-law, and
				child-in-law.
(b) The professional
				shall avoid dual relationships that could impair professional judgment or
				increase the risk of exploitation of a client. For the purpose of this Rule
				"dual relationships" includes relationships in a social media setting where the
				professional and client have access to privileged information including
				relationships, photographs, and personal thoughts and opinions of the
				professional and the client.
(c)
				Sexual activity or sexual contact of a substance use disorder professional with
				a client shall be restricted as follows:
(1)
				The substance use disorder professional shall not engage in or solicit sexual
				activity or sexual contact with a current client.
(2) The substance use disorder professional
				shall not engage in or solicit sexual activity or sexual contact with a former
				client for five years after the termination of the counseling or consulting
				relationship.
(3) The substance use
				disorder professional shall not engage in or solicit sexual activity or sexual
				contact with any client the professional knows to be currently in treatment at
				their own agency or place of professional employment.
(4) The substance use disorder professional
				shall not knowingly engage in or solicit sexual activity or sexual contact with
				any identified former client of their own agency or place of professional
				employment for five years after the termination of the counseling or consulting
				relationship if both the professional was employed at the agency and the former
				client was a client of the agency during the same time period.
(5) Because sexual activity with a client is
				harmful to the client, a substance use disorder professional shall not engage
				in sexual activities with a former client even after a five-year interval
				unless the substance use disorder professional who engages in such activity
				after the five years following cessation or termination of treatment bears the
				burden of demonstrating that there has been no harm to the client in light of
				all relevant factors, including the following:
(A) the amount of time that has passed since
				treatment services were terminated;
(B) the nature and duration of the treatment
				services;
(C) the circumstances of
				termination;
(D) the client's
				personal history;
(E) the client's
				current mental status;
(F) the
				likelihood of adverse impact on the client and others; and
(G) any statement made or action taken by the
				substance use disorder professional during the course of treatment suggesting
				or inviting the possibility of a post-termination sexual or romantic
				relationship with the client.