Ohio Administrative Code
Title 4757 - Counselor, Social Worker, and Marriage and Family Therapist Board
Chapter 4757-29 - Marriage and Family Therapy
Section 4757-29-01 - Marriage and family therapy supervision

(1) "Clinical supervision" or "work supervision" is supervision required of marriage and family therapists whose practice includes the diagnosis and treatment of mental and emotional disorders. This supervision requires the evaluation of the supervisee's performance; professional guidance to the supervisee; approval of the supervisee's intervention plans and their implementation; the assumption of responsibility for the welfare of the supervisee's clients; and assurance that the supervisee functions within the limits of the supervisee's license. The supervisor must have access to the supervisee's client documentation. Supervision must occur on a regular and consistent basis, such that the supervisor can evaluate the client progress and and the performance of the supervisee. The clinical/work supervisor will review the case notes of the marriage and family therapist. The assessment, diagnosis, treatment plan, revisions to the treatment plan, correspondence and transfer or termination of the client(s) shall be approved by the supervisor and shall be made available to the board upon request. Marriage and family therapists shall disclose to their clients on all printed and electronic material that they are under the supervision of an appropriately licensed mental health professional when diagnosing and treating mental and emotional disorders. The supervisee shall on all printed and electronic materials also disclose to their clients the name(s) of said professional(s). The work/clinical supervisor may be subject to discipline when the board determines the supervisor failed to provide proper supervision to a dependent licensee under supervision.

(2) "Training supervision" is supervision applied to all individuals who are gaining the experience required for a license as an independent marriage and family therapist or under rule 4757-25-04 of the Administrative Code for a license as a marriage and family therapist. This type of supervision requires extensive time and involvement on the part of the supervisor in order to help supervisees improve their skills and/or learn new skills, and promote the professional development as a marriage and family therapist. Supervision must start with an initial face to face meeting, which may be conducted via videoconferencing, after which communication may be in person, via videoconferencing, or by phone. Training supervision shall include an average of one hour of contact between the supervisor and supervisee for every twenty hours of work by the supervisee.

(1) To provide for the protection of consumer and client welfare;

(2) To provide that supervisees function within the limits of their competence;

(3) To enhance professional development of a marriage and family therapist;

(4) To provide training in activities relevant to the supervisee's position and academic background; and

(5) To promote the delivery of services in a non-discriminatory manner.

(1) All supervisees engaging in training supervision for licensure as independent marriage and family therapists shall be under supervision of one of the following:

(2) Records of training supervision shall be maintained by the supervisee. and made available to the board upon request. Supervisors have no obligation to maintain supervision records, however supervisors may do so to ensure they are able to properly document supervision hours. The supervision records shall contain information concerning the dates/times of supervision, content and goals of supervision, and shall be signed or acknowledged by the supervisor at least quarterly. The supervision records may be retained on hard copy forms or electronic forms. Logs must be made available to the board upon request.

(3) Upon completion of the required supervision hours to qualify for an independent marriage and family therapist license, the marriage and family therapist shall request that the independent marriage and family therapist with supervision endorsement who last provided training supervision submit all accrued training supervision hours to board using an online evaluation form required by the board to document hours accrued. In submitting the hours, the supervisor shall review the log maintained by the marriage and family therapist and shall consider any notes or recommendations of previous supervisors when submitting the evaluation. The training supervisor shall complete the online evaluation form and submit it to the board within thirty days of receipt of the request from the supervisee. In submitting the hours, the supervisor is not obligated to provide a recommendation for independent licensure if the supervisor has determined the supervisee is not qualified at that time for independent practice. Supervisors who fail to timely submit supervision hours upon a request by a supervisee may be subject to disciplinary action. The evaluation may not be submitted to the board prior to the supervisee completing training supervision requirements.

(4) Request for exceptions due to hardship shall be made in writing to the board. The supervisor shall have demonstrated competence in the area in which he/she is supervising and have training in legal and ethical issues relevant to marriage and family therapy.

(5) Training supervisees may not choose a supervisor who is a family member.

(6) Supervised marriage and family therapist experience obtained out of state may count toward the supervised experience requirement. Applicants shall request such consideration in writing from the marriage and family therapist professional standards committee. Supervisees presenting supervision experience from another state shall provide documentation that the supervisor is equivalent to the requirements of paragraph (C)(1)(a) or (C)(1)(b) of this rule.

(1) A marriage and family therapist may be in solo private practice. A marriage and family therapist who is diagnosing and treating mental and emotional disorders must receive clinical/work supervision.

(2) The clinical/work supervisor may be a licensed independent social worker, licensed professional clinical counselor, independent marriage and family therapist, psychologist, or psychiatrist.

(3) Clinical/work supervision shall be conducted on a regular basis in accordance with paragraph (A)(1) of this rule. The clinical/work supervisor must have access to the marriage and family therapist's client documentation. The clinical/work supervisor will review the case notes of the marriage and family therapist. The clinical/work supervisor is ultimately responsible for client care. The clinical/work supervisor will sign off of any diagnosis, change in diagnosis, and treatment plan.

(4) An independent marriage and family therapist with supervision endorsement may provide both the clinical/work supervision and the training supervision. In such instances, the independent marriage and family therapist with supervision designation and marriage and family therapist should establish a clear understanding of the supervision expectations, which may include a written contract.

(1) After January 1, 2015, only independent marriage and family therapists who have obtained a training supervision designation may provide training supervision.

(2) Applicants for a training supervision designation after January 1, 2015 shall apply on forms required by the board and shall meet at least one of the following:

(3) All independent marriage and family therapists with training supervision designation who have not previously completed the AAMFT thirty hour supervision course or AAMFT supervision refresher course shall maintain their supervision designation status by obtaining three hours in an AAMFT approved supervision refresher course approved by the MFT professional standards committee or equivalent supervision course prior to renewal. All independent marriage and family therapists with training supervision designation who have previously completed the AAMFT thirty hour supervision course or AAMFT supervision refresher course, provided they can show evidence of completion, shall complete three hours every renewal cycle in any supervision course that is approved by this board for marriage and family therapists, and which includes ethics of supervision.

(4) All independent marriage and family therapists with training supervision designation who are actively registered as an AAMFT approved supervisor in good standing shall, upon renewal of their license, provide evidence to the board of their active status with AAMFT, and shall not be required to complete three hours of supervision continuing education to maintain their training supervision designation.