New Mexico Administrative Code
Title 16 - OCCUPATIONAL AND PROFESSIONAL LICENSING
Chapter 22 - PSYCHOLOGISTS AND PSYCHOLOGIST ASSOCIATES
Part 23 - REQUIREMENTS FOR EDUCATION AND CONDITIONAL PRESCRIPTION CERTIFICATE
Section 16.22.23.8 - QUALIFICATIONS AND EDUCATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CONDITIONAL PRESCRIPTIVE CERTIFICATE
Universal Citation: 16 NM Admin Code 16.22.23.8
Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. Qualifications of applicant. The board shall issue a conditional prescription certificate pursuant to 16.22.24.8 NMAC, of these regulations to each applicant who submits evidence satisfactory to the board that the applicant:
(1) has
completed a doctoral program in psychology from an accredited institution of
higher education or professional school or, if the program was not accredited
at the time of the applicant graduation, that the program meets professional
standards determined acceptable by the board;
(2) holds an active unrestricted license to
practice psychology in New Mexico;
(3) has successfully completed
psychopharmacological training that meets the standards set forth in Subsection
B below from either:
(a) an institution of
higher education that has a postdoctoral program of psychopharmacology
education for psychologists and that is accredited by a regional body
recognized by the U.S. department of education or the council for higher
education accreditation; or
(b) a
continuing education provider approved by the American psychological
association that offers a program of psychopharmacology education for
psychologists; or
(c) a continuing
education program of professional development in psychopharmacology for
psychologists that is administered in collaboration with a school and that is a
formal and organized program of study leading to a credential in
psychopharmacology from that school; or
(d) a continuing education program of
professional development in psychopharmacology for psychologists that is
administered in collaboration with a school if the applicant successfully
completed the 450 classroom hours of didactic study referred to in 16.22.23.8
NMAC, of these regulations below prior to January 1, 2004.
B. RxP training program. The psychopharmacology training program referred in Subparagraph (c) above, shall meet the following criteria.
(1) The program shall be an integrated and
organized program of study.
(2) The
program shall have an identifiable body of students at different levels of
matriculation.
(3) The program
shall be clearly identified and labeled as a psychopharmacology program and
shall specify in pertinent institutional catalogues and brochures its intent to
educate and train psychologists to prescribe psychotropic medication.
(4) The program shall have a formally
designated training director who is a psychiatrist or a doctoral psychologist,
trained in the area of psychopharmacology, and licensed to practice in the
jurisdiction in which the program resides.
(5) The training director shall be primarily
responsible for directing the training program and shall have administrative
authority commensurate with those responsibilities.
(6) The training director's credentials and
expertise shall be consistent with the program's mission and goals to train
psychologists to prescribe psychotropic medication.
(7) The program shall provide information
regarding the minimal level of achievement required for postdoctoral trainees
to satisfactorily progress through and complete the psychopharmacological
training program, as well as evidence that it adheres to the minimum levels of
achievement.
(8) The program shall
have formally designated instructors and supervisors in sufficient number to
accomplish the program's education and training.
(9) Supervisors shall hold an active,
unrestricted license in their field of practice in the jurisdiction in which
the program resides or where the supervision is being provided.
(10) The program instructors and supervisors
shall have sufficient expertise, competence, and credentials in the areas in
which they teach or supervise.
(11)
The program instructors and supervisors shall participate actively in the
program's planning, implementation and evaluation.
(12) The program, with appropriate
involvement from its training supervisors, instructors, and trainees, shall
engage in a self-study process that addresses:
(a) expectations for the quality and quantity
of the trainees' preparation and performance in the program;
(b) training goals and objectives for the
trainees and the trainees' views regarding the quality of the training
experiences and the program;
(c)
procedures to maintain current achievements or to make changes as necessary;
and
(d) goals, objectives, and
outcomes in relation to local, regional, and national changes in the knowledge
base of psychopharmacology training.
(13) The program shall follow the guidelines
for psychopharmacology training of post-doctoral psychologists established by
the American psychological association.
(14) As part of the admission and training
process, the training program shall evaluate and assure that every student
completes necessary prerequisite training in basic science (e.g. physiology,
chemistry, and biochemistry), the biological bases of behavior, and
psychopharmacology.
(15) When
students are not in residence, the program provides on-line access to a library
of sufficient diversity and level to support the advanced study of the
psychopharmacological treatment of mental disorders from wherever the student
resides. This access shall remain available throughout all didactic and
clinical phases of the training program. Frequent face-to-face evaluation and
discussions shall be included in the didactic training.
(16) The program provides formal, written
measurement of the mastery of course content.
(17) The program demonstrates in its written
materials or course syllabi that it integrates into the training the following
areas; socio-cultural issues in psychopharmacological treatment,
ethno-pharmacology, use of translators, the cultural context of compliance and
noncompliance with prescribed medication, creating a culturally appropriate
environment to meet patient care treatment and language needs, and working
collaboratively with traditional healers.
C. Didactic instruction.
(1) Within the five years immediately
preceding the date of application for a conditional prescription certificate,
the applicant shall have successfully completed didactic instruction of no
fewer than 450 classroom hours in at least the following core areas of
instruction:
(a) neuroscience;
(b) pharmacology;
(c) psychopharmacology;
(d) physiology;
(e) pathophysiology;
(f) appropriate and relevant physical and
laboratory assessment;
(g) clinical
pharmaco-therapeutics; and
(h)
cultural competence.
(2)
At least three-fourths of the 450 classroom hours of didactic instruction shall
be awarded by one certification or degree-granting institution or continuing
education program.
D. Eighty hour practicum in clinical assessment and pathophysiology.
(1) The 80 hour practicum shall be part of
the psychopharmacology training program from which the applicant obtains the
certification or degree.
(2) The 80
hour practicum shall provide the opportunity for the applicant to observe and
demonstrate competence in physical and health assessment techniques within a
medical setting under the supervision of a physician.
(3) The 80 hour practicum shall be completed
in a timeframe of full-time over two weeks to 30 weeks.
(4) If the applicant cannot complete the 80
hour practicum within the time frame designated in Paragraph (3) of Subsection
D of
16.22.20.8
NMAC, because of illness or other extenuating circumstances, the applicant may
request an extension from the board explaining in writing the extenuating
circumstances and the additional time requested.
(5) The supervising physician and the
training director of the psychopharmacology training program shall certify in
writing that the applicant:
(a) assessed a
diverse and significantly medically ill patient population;
(b) observed the progression of illness and
continuity of care of individual patients;
(c) adequately assessed vital
signs;
(d) demonstrated competent
laboratory assessment; and
(e)
successfully completed the 80-hour practicum.
E. Four-hundred hour practicum. Requirements for the general 400 hour practicum treating a minimum of 100 patients with mental disorders include:
(1)
The 400 hour practicum shall be part of the psychopharmacology training program
from which the applicant obtains the certification, degree or certification of
completion.
(2) One-hundred
patients shall mean 100 separate patients.
(3) The four-hundred hours shall refer to 400
face-to-face hours. The 400 face-to-face hours shall include only time spent
with patients to provide evaluation and treatment for medical
psychopharmacotherapy of patients and time spent in collaboration with the
patient's treating health care practitioner(s).
(4) The applicant must have supervised
experience in the evaluation and treatment of 100 patients, representing as
diverse a patient population as possible, including diversity in the patients:
(a) gender;
(b) different ages throughout the life cycle,
including adults, children/adolescents, and geriatrics; as possible and
appropriate;
(c) range of disorders
listed in the most recent diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders
published by the American psychiatric association and acute and chronic
disorders;
(d) ethnicity;
(e) socio-cultural background; and
(f) economic background.
(5) The applicant and the training program
shall maintain a log on patient seen, which shall include: a coded
identification number for the patient, patient's age, gender, diagnosis, date
and time seen, amount of time seen for psychopharmacotherapy. The log shall be
available to the RxP application committee or the board upon request. The log
shall contain the name and signature of the supervisor.
(6) The applicant and the training program
shall keep records of the time spent during this practicum. The records shall
be available to the psychopharmacology application committee or the board upon
request. The records shall not contain patient identifying
information.
(7) A psychiatrist or
other appropriately trained physician, licensed in good standing in the
jurisdiction in which the psychiatrist or other physician rendered supervision
shall be the primary supervising physician of the practicum. The primary
supervising physician shall be responsible for the overall supervision of the
applicant; however, training may be assigned to other licensed physicians,
i.e., secondary supervisors, as designated by the primary supervising physician
and the training director of the program.
(8) One to one supervision will be provided
either face to face or by video conference. The applicant shall consult with
the primary or secondary supervising physician, before a decision is made
regarding the psychopharmacological treatment of the patient.
(9) The primary or secondary supervising
physician shall review the charts and records of any patient seen by the
applicant during the practicum while under the supervision of the primary or
secondary supervising physician.
(10) The practicum shall be completed in a
period of time of not less than six months and not more than three
years.
(11) If the applicant cannot
complete the 400 hour practicum within the timeframe designated in Subsection E
of 16.22.23.8 because of illness or other extenuating circumstances, the
applicant may request an extension from the board explaining in writing the
extenuating circumstances and the additional time requested. The applicant
shall receive a minimum of one hour of supervision for every eight hours of
patient time. The applicant is responsible to keep a log of the dates and time
of supervision. The supervisor may meet with the applicant for additional
education at his or her discretion.
(12) The practicum shall be completed within
the five years immediately preceding the date of application for a conditional
prescription certificate.
(13) Upon
request of the RxP application committee or the board, the primary supervising
physician shall provide an affidavit stating that:
(a) the supervisor does not have conflict of
interest and is not a member of the applicant's family or household as defined
in 16.22.26 NMAC, of these regulations;
(b) the supervisor or a designated secondary
supervisor reviewed and discussed with the applicant the charts and records of
patients seen by the applicant during the practicum;
(c) the practicum included a diverse group of
patients, as defined in these regulations; and
(d) the applicant did not write any
prescriptions without the primary or secondary supervisor's supervision and
signature or authorization.
(14) The primary supervising physician shall
conduct a formal, written evaluation on at least two occasions, at the midpoint
and at the end of the practicum. The evaluation shall assess the applicant's
progress and competencies and shall describe any deficiencies or areas where
competency has not been achieved. The primary supervisor shall submit copies of
the evaluations to the applicant and the training director.
(15) In the event of documented deficiencies
the training director of the psychopharmacology program shall specify in
writing:
(a) the areas in need of
remediation;
(b) the process and
procedures by which these areas are to be re-mediated; and
(c) the method by which the training director
and supervisor shall determine that the applicant has achieved the competencies
necessary to successfully complete the practicum.
(16) The psychologist in practicum training
or the conditional prescribing psychologist is responsible for informing the
patient or the patient's legal guardian, when appropriate, or explain to the
patient through the recommendation system at an institution if the institution
itself generally handles such informed consent. The name and role of the
supervisor and sufficient information of the expectation and requirements of
the practicum shall be provided to the patient or the patient's legal guardian
at the initial contact necessary to obtain informed consent and appropriate
releases. The applicant shall provide additional information requested by the
patient or the patient's legal guardian concerning the applicant's education,
training and experience.
(17) The
primary supervising physician and the training director of the
psychopharmacology program from which the applicant obtained a certification of
successful completion or a degree in psychopharmacology shall certify to the
board in writing that the applicant has successfully completed the
practicum.
F. National examination. To qualify for a conditional prescription or prescription certificate, the applicant must demonstrate competency by passing a national examination.
(1) Applicant must
pass the Psychopharmacology Examination for Psychologists (PEP), administered
and maintained by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Boards
(ASPPB).
(2) Applicant must be
eligible to take the PEP after the applicant successfully completes the
didactic portion of the postdoctoral program of education in
psychopharmacology.
(3) The passing
score shall be the passing score recommended by the association of state and
provincial psychology boards (ASPPB).
(4) If the applicant fails the examination,
the applicant may take the examination a second time after a mandatory 90-day
waiting period.
(5) If the
applicant fails the examination on the second attempt, the applicant will be
required to wait one year before repeating the examination.
(6) If the applicant fails the examination on
the third attempt, the applicant is required to take the remedial didactic
program recommended by the psychopharmacology application committee and
approved by the board before the applicant is allowed to repeat the
examination.
G. An applicant who has successfully completed a psychopharmacology educational program, an 80 hour practicum in clinical assessment and pathophysiology, a 400 hour/100 patient practicum treating patients with mental disorders or the national certification examination prior to the effective date of these regulations may include the completed portion(s) of the training in the application for a conditional prescription certificate. The applicant who has completed the 400 hour practicum shall include certification in writing from the primary supervising physician that the applicant has successfully completed the practicum and is trained to competently treat a diverse patient population as defined in these regulations. The board shall approve the prior training program(s) that satisfy the requirements as listed in 16.22.23 NMAC, of these regulations.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. New Mexico may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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