Current through September 17, 2024
Unprofessional conduct includes but is not limited to the
acts set out in Neb. Rev. Stat. §
38-179
and these regulations.
013.01
COMPETENCE. A credential holder must not provide
services for which he or she is not trained or experienced, unless he or she
associates with another credential holder with established competence in the
service or obtains the knowledge through necessary study. A credential holder
must not encourage or promote the practice of mental health services, social
work, professional counseling, or marriage and family therapy by untrained or
unqualified persons.
013.02
CONFIDENTIALITY. A credential holder must hold in
confidence information received from a potential client with respect to the
service requested, except in those unusual circumstances in which to do so
would result in clear danger to the person or to others, or where otherwise
required or permitted by law. A person who communicates information
unilaterally to a credential holder without a reasonable expectation that the
credential holder is willing to form a client-therapist relationship, is not a
potential client.
013.03
DISCLOSURE OF CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION. A person
credentialed or certified pursuant to these regulations must not disclose any
information he or she may have acquired from a client or patient, except:
(A) With the written consent of such
person;
(B) In the case of death or
disability when the client or patient is unable to consent, with the consent of
a person legal authorized to consent on behalf of the decedent or client or
patient;
(C) When more than one
person in a family received therapy conjointly, each such family member who is
legally competent to execute a waiver must agree to the waiver referred to in
this section. Without such a waiver from each family member legally competent
to execute a waiver, a practitioner must not disclose information received from
any family member who received therapy conjointly for any therapy session where
the non-consenting family member was present;
(D) As such privilege is limited by the laws
of the state of Nebraska;
(E) When
the person waives the privilege by bringing charges against the credential
holder; and
(F) When there is a
duty to warn under the limited circumstances set forth in Neb. Rev. Stat.
§
38-2137.
013.04
DISCRIMINATION. Credential holders must provide
professional assistance to clients or patients without discrimination on the
basis of race, color, religion, sex, disability, marital status, national
origin, age, familial status, and ancestry.
013.05
DUAL RELATIONSHIP.
Credential holders must make every effort to avoid dual
relationships with clients that could impair professional judgment or increase
the risk of exploitation. When a dual relationship cannot be avoided,
credential holders must take appropriate professional precautions, such as
seeking supervision or professional consultation, to ensure judgment is not
impaired and no exploitation occurs. Dual relationships include, but are not
limited to, business or close personal relationships with a client.
013.05(A)
SEXUAL INTIMACY OR
CONTACT. Sexual intimacy or contact with a client during the
provision of professional services, 5 years preceding the provision of
professional services, or with a former client less than 5 years following the
last professional contact is prohibited.
(i)
Sexual Intimacy means any written, verbal, or physical behavior which a
reasonable person would find to be sexually seductive or sexually demeaning.
Sexual intimacy may or may not include sexual contact.
(ii) Sexual contact includes sexual
intercourse, either genital or anal, cunnilingus, fellatio, sodomy or the
handling of breasts, genital areas, buttocks, or thighs whether clothed or
unclothed, initiated or consented to by the credential holder.
013.05(B)
EXPLOITATION. In the therapeutic relationship,
credential holders need to be aware of the intimacy and responsibilities
inherent in the therapeutic relationship and must avoid actions that seek to
meet their personal needs at the expense of clients. Credential holders must be
aware of their influential positions with respect to clients, and they must
avoid exploiting the trust and dependency of such persons. Credential holders,
therefore, must make every effort to avoid conditions and multiple
relationships with clients that could impair professional judgment or increase
the risk of exploitation. Failure to comply with this standard is considered
unprofessional conduct.
013.06
PROFESSIONAL
RECORDS. Failure to comply with the following professional record
requirements is unprofessional conduct:
(A)
Client records must be maintained a minimum of 5 years following termination of
services. Records or documentation of the actual fact of clinical record
destruction must be maintained for an additional 5 years;
(B) Client records must be stored,
safeguarded, and disposed of in ways that maintain confidentiality and in
accord with applicable laws and professional standards;
(C) Prior to the credential holder moving
from the area, closing a practice, or prior to the death of the credential
holder, a credential holder must arrange for the storage, transfer, or access
to, or dispose of client records in ways that maintain confidentiality and
safeguard the welfare of clients;
(D) Client records must include a signed and
dated informed consent agreement outlining confidentiality and the limitations
of confidentiality, as well as the rights and responsibilities of the client in
the client's file;
(E) Client
records must include documentation which reflect the services provided and
include applicable release of information and discussions with other
professionals; and
(F) A credential
holder must allow a client access to his or her records in accordance with Neb.
Rev. Stat. §
71-8401 to
71-8407.
013.07
PROFESSIONAL
RELATIONSHIPS. A credential holder must safeguard the welfare of
clients or patients and maintain professional relationships with clients or
patients. Commission of any of the following acts or behavior constitutes
unprofessional conduct.
(A) Exploiting another
person for one's own advantage;
(B)
Performing or agreeing to perform mental health services, social work,
professional counseling, or marriage and family therapy that have been
requested when such services are known to be contraindicated or
unjustified;
(C) Performing or
agreeing to perform procedures that have been requested when such procedures
are known to be outside of the mental health practice, social work,
professional counseling, or marriage and family therapy scope of
practice;
(D) Verbally or
physically abusing clients or patients;
(E) Attempting to provide diagnostic or
treatment information to patient(s) or client(s) that is beyond the credential
holder's level of education, training and expertise;
(F) Failing to make a referral when a
referral is in the patient's or client's best interest;
(G) Delegating to other personnel those
client or patient related services for which the clinical skills and expertise
of a credential holder are required;
(H) Failure to safeguard the patient's or
client's dignity and right to privacy;
(I) Failure to take reasonable steps to
clarify at the outset the following:
(i) Who
is the client or patient; and
(ii)
The relationship the practitioner will have with each person if there are
multiple individuals present. This clarification includes the practitioner's
role, the probable services to be provided, and the probable uses of the
information obtained; or
(J) Committing any act which endangers client
or patient safety or welfare.
013.08
REFERRALS.
If, for any reason, a credential holder is unable to provide therapeutic
services to a client or patient, the credential holder must refer the client or
patient to other credential holders. This may be done by directing the client
or patient to specific credential holders or to a list or directory of
credential holders who may be able to provide professional assistance. The
referral must be documented in the client or patient's record. Failure to
comply with this standard is unprofessional conduct.
013.09
SEXUAL
HARASSMENT. A credential holder must not under any circumstances
engage in sexual harassment of clients or patients. Sexual harassment includes
making unwelcome sexual advances, requesting sexual favors, and engaging in
other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature which results in:
(A) Providing or denying care to a client or
patient;
(B) Creating an
intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment for the client or patient;
or
(C) Interfering with a patient's
or client's ability to recover.
013.10
STUDENTS AND
SUPERVISEES. Failure to comply with the following is considered
unprofessional conduct:
(A) A credential
holder must not exploit the trust and dependency of students and
supervisees.
(B) A credential
holder must be aware of his or her influential positions with respect to
students and supervisees, and they must avoid exploiting the trust and
dependency of such persons. Credential holders, therefore, must make every
effort to avoid conditions and multiple relationships that could impair
professional objectivity or increase the risk of exploitation. When the risk of
impairment or exploitation exists due to conditions or multiple roles,
therapists must take appropriate precautions.
(C) A credential holder must not provide
professional services to current students or supervisees.
(D) A credential holder must not engage in
sexual intimacy with students or supervisees during the evaluative or training
relationship between the credential holder and student or supervisee
(E) A credential holder must take reasonable
measures to ensure that professional services provided by supervisees are
within the supervisees training, level of experience, and competence.
(F) A credential holder must avoid accepting
as supervisees or students those individuals with whom a prior or existing
relationship could compromise the credential holder's objectivity. When such
situations cannot be avoided, credential holders must take appropriate
precautions to maintain objectivity. Such relationships include, but are not
limited to, those individuals with whom the credential holder has a current or
prior sexual, close personal, immediate familial, or therapeutic
relationship.
(G) A credential
holder must not disclose information from a supervisee about a client or
patient which is obtained as part of a professional relationship except with
written authorization or waiver from or by the client or patient, or when
mandated or permitted by law. In educational or training settings where there
are multiple supervisors, disclosures are permitted only to other professional
colleagues, administrators, or employers who share responsibility for training
of the supervisee.
(H) A credential
holder must sign-off as completed a supervisee's hours of experience, when the
hours have been completed.
013.11
FAILURE TO COOPERATE WITH
INVESTIGATIONS. Refusal to cooperate or failure to furnish
requested information during any investigation by the Department.
