Louisiana Administrative Code
Title 46
PROFESSIONAL AND OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS

 Part LXIII. Psychologists

Note: Updates to the LAC my be obtained from http://doa.louisiana.gov/osr/lac/46v63/46v63.doc 

Chapter 7.  Supervised Practice Leading Toward Licensure

§701.    Preface

A.     This document details reasonable minimal standards for supervised practice and establishes the legal, administrative and professional responsibility of the licensed psychologist designated as supervisor.

B.     The supervisory function serves a multiplicity of purposes. Supervision provides guidance in administrative issues in the practice setting, continues and expands education in skills, offers emotional support, and provides evaluation for purposes of the supervisee’s growth, as well as administrative judgment relative to the supervisee’s capacity for autonomous professional function. The supervisor assigns work, sets realistic standards for achievement and offers evaluation of the supervisee’s performance. The supervisor offers a perspective on the relationship between the supervisee’s assignment, the rest of the setting and the facilities available outside of the setting in order that the supervisee’s professional procedures are intelligently placed within the context of all of the systems affecting and influencing the client. In addition to all of this, the supervisor must deal with those personal characteristics of the supervisee which either enhance or interfere with work efficiency. The private actions and behaviors of the supervisee which are not relevant to nor expressed in the work setting shall not be dealt with in the supervisory relationship. The supervisor shall limit supervision to those areas in which he/she has professional expertise, as well as develop the specialized skills necessary to render competent supervision.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:2353.

HISTORICAL NOTE:  Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Examiners of Psychologists, LR 5:249 (August 1979), amended LR 7:187 (April 1981).

§703.    Duration and Setting of Supervised Practice

A.     Two years of full-time (or equivalent) supervised and documented experience shall be required for licensure.

         1.  Credit shall not be granted for practice in connection with course work practicum experience for which predoctoral graduate credits are granted.

         2.  To be credited toward the two years full-time requirements each assignment in a setting or integrated program shall be of at least 500 hours in duration and at least half-time for that setting or integrated program.  Supervised practice must be completed within five calendar years, and for cause shown, the board may grant extensions.

         3.  Internship Programs. A predoctoral internship shall be credited toward the required two years of supervised experience if that experience was required as a part of the doctoral degree and meets the board’s requirements under LAC 46:LXIII.305.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:2353.

HISTORICAL NOTE:  Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Examiners of Psychologists, LR 5:249 (August 1979), amended LR 7:187 (April 1981), LR 13:180 (March 1987), LR 29:2095 (October 2003).

§705.    Qualifications of Supervisors

A.     Responsibility for the overall supervision of the supervisee’s professional growth resides in the licensed psychologist. Supervising psychologists shall have training in the specific area of practice in which they are offering supervision. Specific skill training may be assigned to other specialists, under the authority of the supervising psychologist. The non-psychologist specialist shall have clearly established practice and teaching skills demonstrable to the satisfaction of both the supervising psychologist and the supervisee.

B.     The supervisor shall limit the number of persons supervised so as to be certain to maintain a level of supervision and practice consistent with professional standards insuring the welfare of the supervisee and the client.

C.     The supervisor shall not be a member of the supervisee’s immediate family.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:2353.

HISTORICAL NOTE:  Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Examiners of Psychologists, LR 5:249 (August 1979), amended LR 7:187 (April 1981).

§707.    Amount of Supervisory Contact

A.     There shall be one hour per week as a minimum for general professional supervision. Exceptions to the requirement must have prior approval by the board. Specific case discussion and skill training require additional supervisory contact. Supervision is to be conducted on a one-to-one basis, and shall not be substituted for by group seminars or consultation even though they may be excellent training procedures in their own right. It is likely that more than one hour per week would be required, especially with supervisees of lesser experience.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:2353.

HISTORICAL NOTE:  Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Examiners of Psychologists, LR 5:249 (August 1979), amended LR 7:187 (April 1981).

§709.    Conduct of Supervision

A.     The board recognizes that the variability in preparation for practice of the trainee will require individually tailored supervision. The specific content of the supervision procedures will be worked out between the individual supervisor and the supervisee.

B.     The licensed psychologist who provides supervision for the candidate for licensure must have legal functioning authority over and professional responsibility for the work of the supervisee. This means that the supervisor must be available to the supervisee at the point of the decision making. The supervisor’s relationship with the supervisee shall be clearly differentiated from that of consultant, who may be called in at the discretion of the consultee and who has no functional authority for, nor none of the legal or professional accountability for the services performed or for the welfare of the client.

C.     The licensed psychologist is responsible for the delivery of services, the representation to the public of services, and the supervisor/supervisee relationship.

         1.  All clients will be informed of the availability or possible necessity of meetings with the supervising psychologist at the request of the client, the supervisee, or the psychologist. The supervisor will be available for emergency consultation and intervention.

         2.  All written communication will clearly identify the licensed psychologist as responsible for all psychological services provided. Public announcement of services and fees, and contact with the public or professional community shall be offered only by or in the name of the licensed psychologist. It is the responsibility of both the supervising psychologist and the supervisee to inform the client, to whatever extent is necessary for the client to understand, of the supervisory status and other specific information as to supervisee’s qualifications and functions.

         3.  Billing and receipt of payment is the responsibility of the employing agency or the licensed psychologist. The setting and the psychological work performed shall be clearly identified as that of the licensed psychologist. The physical location where services are delivered may not be owned, leased, or rented by the supervisee.

         4.  The supervisor must be paid either directly by the client or by the agency employing the supervisee. The supervisee may not pay the supervisor for supervisory services, nor may the supervisee and/or his/her immediate family have any financial interest in the employing agency.

         5.  The supervising psychologist is responsible for the maintenance of information and files relevant to the client. The client shall be fully informed, to whatever extent is necessary for that client to understand, that the supervising psychologist or the employing agency is to be the source of access to this information in the future.

D.     In the event the supervisee publicly represents himself/herself inappropriately, or supervision is not conducted according to LAC 46:LXIII.709, the board may rule that any experience gained in that situation is not commensurate with ethical standards and thus not admissible as experience toward licensure. The board may further rule that any psychologist providing supervision under those circumstances is in violation of ethical standards which results in disciplinary action such as suspension or revocation of licensure.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 37:2353.

HISTORICAL NOTE:  Promulgated by the Department of Health and Human Resources, Board of Examiners of Psychologists, LR 5:249 (August 1979), amended LR 7:187 (April 1981).

§711.    Evaluation and Accreditation of Supervised Practice

A.     The board shall require submission of information by the supervisor(s) which will enable it to evaluate and credit the extent and quality of the candidate’s supervised practice. The form requesting such information shall cover the following:

         1.  name of supervisee;

         2.  educational level of supervisee;

         3.  supervisor’s name, address, license number, date and state in which granted, and area of specialization;

         4.   name and nature of setting in which supervised practice took place;

         5.  dates of practice covered in this report;

         6.  number of practice hours during this period;

         7.  supervisee’s duties;

         8.  number of one-to-one supervisory hours.

B.     Assessment of Supervisee’s Performance

         1.  The board may also require the supervisee to submit reports.

         2.  Supervised practice time during which the supervisor deems the supervisee’s performance to have been unacceptable shall not be credited toward the required supervised practice hours.

AUTHORITY NOTE:  Promulgated in accordance with R.S.37:2353.