SECTION 140.400. Definitions

Notwithstanding the provisions of §441.101 of this title (relating to Definitions), the following words and terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) Abuse--An intentional, knowing, or reckless act or omission by a counselor, applicant for counselor licensure, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, or personnel of any such person that causes or may cause death, emotional harm or physical injury to a client. Abuse includes, without limitation, the following:

(A) any sexual contact, sexual exploitation, or indecent exposure between a counselor, applicant for counselor licensure, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, or personnel of any such person, and a client, or as otherwise defined in this section;

(B) corporal punishment or physical assault;

(C) nutritional deprivation or sleep deprivation;

(D) efforts to cause fear;

(E) the use of any form of communication to threaten, curse, shame, or degrade a client;

(F) restraint that does not conform with Chapter 448 of this title (relating to Standard of Care);

(G) coercive or restrictive actions taken in response to a client's request for discharge or refusal of medication or treatment that are illegal or not justified by the client's condition; and

(H) any other act or omission classified as abuse by Texas law, including, but not limited to, Texas Family Code, §261.001 and Texas Human Resources Code, §48.002.

(2) Accredited institution of higher education--An institution that holds accreditation or candidacy status from an accreditation organization recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

(3) Act--Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 504, Chemical Dependency Counselors.

(4) Administrative Hearing--A contested case hearing conducted by the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) under Texas Government Code, Chapter 2001, Administrative Procedure Act.

(5) Administrative Law Judge--An individual appointed by the chief administrative law judge of SOAH under Texas Government Code, §2003.041, to preside over a contested case proceeding.

(6) Administrative Procedure Act (APA)--Texas Government Code, Chapter 2001, as amended.

(7) Adolescent--An individual 13 through 17 years of age whose disabilities of minority have not been removed by marriage or judicial decree.

(8) Adult--An individual 18 years of age or older, or an individual under the age of 18 whose disabilities of minority have been removed by marriage or judicial decree.

(9) Advanced Practice Nurse--A registered nurse currently licensed in Texas who is approved by the Texas Board of Nursing to engage in advanced practice.

(10) Applicant--A person who has submitted an application for an initial, or for the renewal of, a license, certification, or registration.

(11) Assessment--An ongoing process through which the counselor collaborates with the client and others to gather and interpret information necessary for developing and revising a treatment plan and evaluating client progress toward achievement of goals identified in the treatment plan, resulting in comprehensive identification of the client's strengths, weaknesses, and problems/needs.

(12) Career School or College--An organization approved and regulated by the Texas Workforce Commission, pursuant to Title 40, Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 807 (relating to Career Schools and Colleges), that offers a course of study in chemical dependency counseling.

(13) Certified Clinical Supervisor (CCS)--A person certified by the department pursuant to Texas Occupations Code §504.1521 (relating to Supervised Work Experience).

(14) Chemical Dependency Treatment (treatment)--A planned, structured, and organized chemical dependency program designed to initiate and promote a person's chemical-free status or to maintain the person free of illegal drugs. It includes, but is not limited to, the application of planned procedures to identify and change patterns of behavior related to or resulting from substance-related disorders that are maladaptive, destructive, or injurious to health, or to restore appropriate levels of physical, psychological, or social functioning.

(15) Child--For purposes of reporting abuse and neglect, a child is an individual under the age of 18 whose disabilities of minority have not been removed by marriage or judicial decree. For all other purposes in these rules, child shall mean an individual under the age of 13.

(16) Client--An individual who receives or has received services, including admission authorization or assessment or referral, from a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, applicant for licensure as a counselor, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, or from a person for whom the counselor, intern, certified clinical supervisor or applicant is working on a paid or voluntary basis, or was working at the time the individual was a client.

(17) Clinical Training Institution (CTI)--An individual or legal entity registered with the department to supervise a counselor intern.

(18) Counseling-related field--A mental health discipline utilizing human development, psychotherapeutic, and mental health principles including, but not limited to, psychology, psychiatry, social work, marriage and family therapy, and counseling and guidance. Non-counseling related fields include, but are not limited to, sociology, education, administration, dance therapy and theology.

(19) Counselor--A licensed chemical dependency counselor.

(20) Counselor Intern (CI or intern)--A person seeking a license as a chemical dependency counselor who is registered with the department and pursuing a course of training in chemical dependency counseling at a registered clinical training institution or under the supervision of a certified clinical supervisor.

(21) CSAT--Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, United States Department of Health and Human Services.

(22) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM)--The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders published by the American Psychiatric Association. Any reference to DSM shall constitute a reference to the most recent edition published.

(23) Department--The Department of State Health Services.

(24) Exploitation--The illegal or improper use of a client, or the client's resources, for monetary or personal benefit, profit, or gain by a counselor, counselor intern, or applicant for counselor licensure, or any other act or omission classified as exploitation by Texas law including, but not limited to, Texas Family Code, §261.001 and Texas Human Resources Code, §48.002. Exploitation includes, but is not limited to, sexual exploitation, as defined herein.

(25) Graduate--An individual who has successfully completed, or been exempted from, as applicable, the 270 hours of education, 300 hour practicum, and 4,000 hours of supervised work experience and who is still registered with the department as a counselor intern.

(26) Hearing--Administrative Hearing.

(27) Indecent Exposure--Exposure by a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, applicant for any such license, or personnel of a clinical training institution or other licensee, of the individual's anus or any part of the individual's genitals, knowing a client is present; or compulsion or encouragement by a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, applicant for any such license, or personnel of a clinical training institution or other licensee, for a client to expose the client's anus or any part of the client's genitals.

(28) Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes (KSAs)--The knowledge, skills, and attitudes of addictions counseling as defined by CSAT Technical Assistance Publication (TAP 21) "Addictions Counseling Competencies: the Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes of Professional Practice."

(29) License--Unless otherwise specified explicitly or by the context, any form of licensure issued under this subchapter, including a CI registration, CCS certification, CTI registration, or licensed chemical dependency counselor license.

(30) Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC)--A counselor licensed by the department, pursuant to Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 504, to engage in the practice of chemical dependency counseling.

(31) Licensee--Unless otherwise specified explicitly or by the context, any holder of a license issued under this subchapter, including the holder of a CI registration, CCS certification, CTI registration, or LCDC license.

(32) Neglect--A negligent act or omission by a counselor, applicant for counselor licensure, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, or personnel of any such person that causes or may cause death, physical injury, or substantial emotional harm to a participant or client. Examples of neglect include, but are not limited to:

(A) failure to provide adequate nutrition, clothing, or health care;

(B) failure to provide a safe environment free from abuse;

(C) failure to maintain adequate numbers of appropriately trained staff;

(D) failure to establish or carry out an appropriate individualized treatment plan; and

(E) any other act or omission classified as neglect by the Texas law including, but not limited to, Texas Family Code, §261.001 and Texas Human Resources Code, §48.002.

(33) Peer Assistance Program--A program approved by the department pursuant to Texas Occupations Code, §504.057 (relating to Approval of Peer Assistance Programs).

(34) Person--An individual, corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity.

(35) Practice of Chemical Dependency Counseling--Providing or offering to provide chemical dependency counseling services involving the application of the principles, methods, and procedures of the chemical dependency counseling profession, as defined by the practice dimensions and competencies identified and described in the CSAT Technical Assistance Publication (TAP 21) "Addictions Counseling Competencies: the Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes of Professional Practice."

(36) Prevention--A proactive process that uses multiple strategies to preclude the illegal use of alcohol, tobacco and other drugs and to foster safe, healthy, drug-free environments.

(37) Private Practice--The individual practice of a private, licensed chemical dependency counselor who personally renders individual or group services within the scope of the LCDC's license and in the LCDC's offices. To qualify to be engaged in private practice, the individual LCDC must not hold him/herself out as an organized program, or a part thereof, that provides counseling or treatment. This definition does not prohibit the sharing of office space or administrative support staff.

(38) Qualified Credentialed Counselor (QCC)--A licensed chemical dependency counselor or one of the practitioners listed below, if the practitioner is licensed and in good standing in the State of Texas, and, in performing any activity as a QCC, is acting within the authorized scope of the individual's license:

(A) licensed professional counselor (LPC);

(B) licensed social worker;

(C) licensed marriage and family therapist (LMFT);

(D) licensed psychologist;

(E) licensed physician;

(F) licensed physician's assistant;

(G) certified addictions registered nurse (CARN); or

(H) advanced practice nurse recognized by the Texas Board of Nursing as a clinical nurse specialist or practitioner with a specialty in psychiatric-mental health nursing.

(39) Referral--The process of identifying appropriate services and providing the information and assistance needed to access them.

(40) Rules--An agency statement of general applicability, including a state rule or federal regulation, that implements or prescribes law or policy by defining general standards of conduct, rights, or obligations of persons, or describes the procedure or practice requirements that prescribe the manner in which public business before an agency may be initiated, scheduled, or conducted, or interprets or clarifies law or agency policy. The term includes the amendment or repeal of a prior rule but does not include statements concerning only the internal management or organization of the agency that does not affect private rights or procedures. Any reference to a rule shall mean the rule then in effect and as amended, unless otherwise specified.

(41) Screening--The process through which qualified staff, client, and available significant others, as appropriate, determine the most appropriate initial course of action, given the individual's needs and characteristics and the available resources within the community. In a treatment program, screening includes determining whether an individual is appropriate and eligible for admission to a particular program.

(42) Services--Substance abuse services.

(43) Sexual contact--Any intentional touching, or request to be allowed to touch, by a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, applicant for any such license, or personnel of a clinical training institution or other licensee, including touching through clothing, of the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of a client; any intentional touching of any part of the body of a client, or request to be allowed to touch, including touching through clothing, with the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, applicant for any such license, or personnel of a clinical training institution or other licensee; or any compulsion or encouragement by a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, applicant for any such license, or personnel of such licensee, for a client to engage in touching through clothing, of the anus, breast, or any part of the genitals of another individual, or for a client to touch any part of the body of another individual with the anus, breast, or any part of the client's genitals.

(44) Sexual Exploitation--A pattern, practice, or scheme of conduct by a chemical dependency counselor, counselor intern, certified clinical supervisor, clinical training institution, applicant for any such license, or personnel of any such person, that involves a client and can reasonably be construed as being for the purpose of sexual arousal or gratification or sexual abuse. It may include, without limitation, sexual contact, a request for sexual contact, or a representation that sexual contact or exploitation is consistent with, a part of, or a condition of receiving services. It is not a defense to sexual exploitation of a client if it occurs:

(A) with the actual or perceived consent of the client;

(B) outside of the delivery of services;

(C) off of the premises used for the delivery of substance abuse services; or

(D) after the client has stopped receiving services, where the conduct occurs within two years of when the client stopped receiving services.

(45) State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH)--The agency to which contested cases are referred by the department.

(46) Substance Abuse--A maladaptive pattern of substance use leading to clinically significant impairment or distress, as defined by the most recently published version of the DSM.

(47) Substance Abuse Education--A planned, structured presentation of information provided by qualified staff, related to substance abuse or substance dependence, allowing for discussion of the material presented, and relevant to the client's goals.

(48) Substance Abuse Services (Services)--A comprehensive term intended to describe activities undertaken to address any substance-related disorder as well as education and prevention activities. The term includes, without limitation, the provision of screening, assessment, referral, chemical dependency treatment, and chemical dependency counseling.

(49) Treatment Plan--An individualized, written plan developed and implemented through a collaborative process between qualified personnel and the client and reflecting and identifying desired treatment outcomes and the strategies for achieving them. At a minimum, the treatment plan addresses the identified substance use disorder(s), as well as issues related to treatment progress, including relationships with family and significant others, employment, education, spirituality, health concerns, and legal needs.

(50) Unethical Conduct--Conduct prohibited by the ethical standards adopted by state or national professional organizations or by rules established by a profession's state licensing agency.

Source Note: The provisions of this §140.400 adopted to be effective September 9, 2008, 33 TexReg 7520; amended to be effective August 9, 2012, 37 TexReg 5788