State Codes and Statutes

Statutes > Nebraska > Chapter38 > 38-2133

38-2133. Marriage and family therapist; certification; qualifications.(1) A person who applies to the department for certification as a marriage and family therapist shall be qualified for such certification if he or she:(a) Provides evidence to the department that he or she has a master's or doctoral degree in marriage and family therapy from a program approved by the board or a graduate degree in a field determined by the board to be related to marriage and family therapy and graduate-level course work determined by the board to be equivalent to a master's degree in marriage and family therapy;(b) Provides evidence to the department that he or she has had at least three thousand hours of experience in marriage and family therapy under a qualified supervisor following receipt of the graduate degree; and(c) Completes an application and passes an examination approved by the board.(2) For purposes of this section:(a) Actively engaged in the practice of marriage and family therapy may include (i) services and activities provided under the direct supervision of a person with at least a master's degree in marriage and family therapy from a program approved by the board or (ii) services and activities that are classified by title or by description of duties and responsibilities as marriage and family therapy practice;(b) Qualified supervisor means a licensed mental health practitioner, a psychologist licensed to engage in the practice of psychology, or a licensed physician who meets supervisory standards established by rules and regulations of the board and the department; and(c) Supervision means face-to-face contact between an applicant and a qualified supervisor during which the applicant apprises the supervisor of the diagnosis and treatment of each client, the clients' cases are discussed, the supervisor provides the applicant with oversight and guidance in treating and dealing with clients, and the supervisor evaluates the applicant's performance. In order for a supervised period of time to be credited toward the time of supervision required by subsection (1) of this section, it shall consist of the following:(i) A minimum of a ratio of two hours of supervision per fifteen hours of the applicant's contact with clients;(ii) Focus on raw data from the applicant's clinical work which is made directly available to the supervisor through such means as written clinical materials, direct observation, and video and audio recordings;(iii) A process which is distinguishable from personal psychotherapy or didactic instruction; and(iv) A proportion of individual and group supervision as determined by the rules and regulations of the board. SourceLaws 1993, LB 669, § 48; Laws 1994, LB 1210, § 107; Laws 1997, LB 752, § 163; Laws 2000, LB 1135, § 15; Laws 2003, LB 242, § 78; R.S.1943, (2003), § 71-1,329; Laws 2007, LB463, § 750. Cross ReferencesUniform Credentialing Act, see section 38-101.