Clinical Mental Health Counseling Practice Flashcards

A set of 50 vocabulary-style flashcards based on the lecture notes transcript regarding clinical mental health counseling, including policies, laws, ethical principles, and specialized assessment terms.

Policy

A document outlining what a governing body hopes to achieve for its constituents and the methods and principles it will use to reach its goals; these are aspirational and non-enforceable.

Laws

Sets of rules decided on by legislative bodies to govern society; unlike policies, these are compulsory and include specific provisions for punishment if not followed.

Regulations

Ancillary implementation tools used to carry out policies and the authority of laws, often prescribed by a governing body toImplement legislation with the same force as law.

Consensus definition of counseling ($2009$)

A professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families, and groups to accomplish mental health, wellness, education, and career goals.

Mental Health Parity

A legal requirement that insurers or health care service plan providers do not discriminate between coverage for mental illness, substance abuse, and other physical disorders.

Licensure Portability

The ability of a professional counselor licensed at the independent practice level to transfer their license to another state or U.S. jurisdiction upon changing residence.

Tricare

The government-managed health insurance program (formerly known as CHAMPUS) provided to all uniformed service members, retirees, and their families.

$20/20$: A Vision for the Future of Counseling

A summit and joint effort between AASCB and ACA involving $31$ major counseling organizations to advance counselors’ professional identity.

Ike Skelton National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA)

Public Law $111-383$, enacted in $2011$, which directed the Department of Defense to establish criteria for professional counselors to provide independent care to Tricare beneficiaries.

NCMHE

The National Clinical Mental Health Counseling Examination, a passing score on which is required for counselors to practice independently under Tricare.

Medicare Part B

The specific part of the federal health insurance program for individuals aged $65$ or older that covers doctor's services, outpatient care, medical supplies, and preventive services.

Advocacy

The pleading for a cause or support of a person, group, or policy through activities such as research, education, and lobbying to effectuate change.

Autonomy

The core ethical principle based on one's basic right to control the direction of one's life.

Nonmaleficence

The counselor's ethical responsibility to avoid harming the client, including both egregious offenses and unintentional harm.

Beneficence

The counselor's responsibility to work for the good of the individual and society by promoting mental health and well-being.

Justice

The ethical principle involving engaging clients equitably, fostering fairness, and being equitable in policies across clients.

Fidelity

The counselor's responsibility to be true to their word, uphold commitments, and be trustworthy in their actions.

Veracity

The ethical principle requiring professional counselors to remain truthful and honest in all professional interactions.

Ethical Decision-Making Model

A series of necessary steps used by counselors to make informed and thoughtful decisions when faced with legally or ethically ambiguous situations.

Boundary Extensions

The practice of stepping slightly outside typical professional boundaries, which may be beneficial to the client in certain reasonable circumstances if appropriately documented.

Sexual Misconduct

Grossly inappropriate breaches of ethics involving romantic or sexual relationships with current clients, their partners, or family members.

Confidentiality

The ethical duty of counselors to not share client information without consent, rooted in the client's right to privacy.

Privacy

A basic human right for the individual to control how and what information is shared.

Privileged Communication

A legal concept that protects certain counselor-client communications from being disclosed in court proceedings.

Online Disinhibition

A phenomenon where individuals feel free to communicate thoughts, ideas, and feelings via social media or technology that they would not share in person.

IPEC

The Interprofessional Education Collaborative Expert Panel, which developed core competencies for interdisciplinary values/ethics and teamwork.

Self-injury (SI)

Direct and deliberate bodily harm in the absence of suicidal intent, often used as a means of coping.

DSHI

The Deliberate Self-Harm Inventory, a $17$-item self-report questionnaire that screens for the presence, frequency, and severity of self-injury.

C-SSRS

The Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale, a $6$-item structured interview that examines suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts.

Clinical Documentation

Any written or electronic record pertaining to contact between the client and counselor and work occurred within the counseling relationship.

Psychosocial Assessment

A comprehensive evaluation of a client’s mental health, well-being, and social functioning, often covering presenting problems and history.

Mental Status Examination (MSE)

An objective structured assessment used to describe a client’s current state of mind through specific areas like appearance, mood, and thought process.

Treatment Plans

A synopsis of a counselor’s work including an overview, long-term goals, short-term goals, and planned interventions.

SOAP Note

A common case note format consisting of Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan sections.

STIPS Note

A case note format focusing on Signs and symptoms, Topics of discussion, Interventions, Progress and plan, and Special issues.

DAP Note

A session note format that includes three key components: Describe, Assess, and Plan.

Deidentification

Processes used to prevent a client’s identity from being linked to information in a case file, such as the safe harbor method using $18$ pieces of information.

Fee-for-service system

A payment model historically used where each service component is itemized, maximizing the quantity of services provided.

Managed Care

An umbrella term for practices providing oversight in health care delivery to provide cost-effective services while ensuring quality.

HMO (Health Maintenance Organization)

A type of managed care plan that focuses on preventative care and utilization management, requiring members to use a Primary Care Physician as a gatekeeper.

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization)

A managed care network that allows policyholders more flexibility in choosing providers, including out-of-network options at a higher cost.

Provider Status (Credentialing)

The designation of a health care provider as being approved by an insurance company or MCO to provide specific services.

NPI (National Provider Identifier)

A $10$-digit identifier used for administrative and financial transactions under HIPAA.

Medical Necessity

The managed care concept determining if services or procedures are justifiable for health and treatment according to accepted medical standards.

Upcoding

The unethical and deceptive practice of giving a client a more severe diagnostic classification than warranted to gain insurance reimbursement.

Clinical Supervision

An intensive relationship-based process that facilitates the supervisee’s professional development and ensures the welfare of the client.

Integrated Developmental Model

A supervision model containing $4$ levels describing the evolution of a supervisee's motivation, autonomy, and self-awareness.

Parallel Processes

A supervision phenomenon where the counselor reenacts with the supervisor what the client has enacted with the counselor.

Isomorphism

A repeated, bidirectional relational pattern occurring in counseling or supervision where the map of one system is equal in form to the other.

Posttraumatic Growth (PTG)

The experience of positive change following the endurance of some form of trauma or disaster.