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Darlene Silvernail, PhD, LMHC, CAP

FMHCA President 

dsilvernail@flmhca.org


 

2014 -2015
Board of Directors

 

Past President 

Carlos Zalaquett, Ph.D., LMHC 

carlosz@usf.edu   


 
President Elect

Michael Holler, MA, NCC, CFMHE, CCCE, LMHC, QCS

mholler@flmhca.org 

 

 

Treasurer 

Norman Hoffman, PhD, EdD, LMHC, LMFT
nhoffman@flmhca.org

 

Secretary

Kathie Erwin, PhD, LMHC

kerwin@flmhca.org 

 

Parliamentarian 

Frank Hannah, MS, LMHC

fhannah@flmhca.org 

 

Member-at-Large

Scott Laurence, MEd, PhD, LMHC

slaurence@flmhca.org 

 

 

Member-at-Large

Joe Skelly, MS, LMHC

jskelly@flmhca.org

 

Member-at-Large

Arron Norton, LMHC, CAP, CRC, CFMHE

anorton@flmhca.org 

 

Newsletter Editor

Darlene Silvernail, PhD, LMHC, CAP

dsilvernail@flmhca.org

 

Executive Administrator

Nancy Montgomery

Professional Administrator

admin@flmhca.com
FMHCA's Mission... 

The Mission of the Florida Mental Health Counselors Association is to advance the profession of clinical mental health counseling through intentional and strength-based advocacy, networking, professional development, legislative efforts, public education, and the promotion of positive mental health for our communities.


FMHCA Newsletter- April-2015

Spring has Sprung

 

 

Greetings from the President

 

April is National Autism Awareness Month.   With ever increasing numbers of children being diagnosed on the spectrum (now 1 in 68!), we as practitioners should be mindful of autism and its effects, not only on the affected person, but on their family.  There are many treatments and therapies available for autism, ranging from behavioral therapies, speech therapies, occupational therapies, and mental health treatment.  How often, though, do we remember that the parents of children with autism are full time caregivers?  Have we looked for signs of caregiver stress?  Have we made sure parents are healthy so that they can offer their best efforts for their children?

Autism is a personal issue for me.  I have close family members who are on the spectrum and I have witnessed firsthand the impact that autism can have on a family.  I hope that this month you will pick an autism support network and put some time and energy into learning more about autism and ways that you can help those affected.  If you have a close friend or family member who has a child with autism, go one step further and offer to babysit for a night.  You would be surprised how few offers they get, and how much they really need a break.

It's that time again - we are seeking people who want to become more involved in FMHCA!  We are looking for people interested in helping at all levels, as committee members, committee chairs, and board members.  Please visit our website at www.flmhca.org to take a look at our committee descriptions and think about what you might have to offer FMHCA - you'll be glad you did!

 

 

 

 

 

 

What It's Like to Have ADHD

 

This is poem written by a 17-year-old young lady with ADHD.  She very succinctly and poetically describes the disorder.

 

 

 

Tabitha Tutt  (Published with permission.)

 

I take medicine to clear my head,

To stop the rattling -- 

To keep someone else from ending up dead.

I take medicine so I can test for five hours and thirty minutes in a row.

So I remember to do my homework,

So I don't slit my own throat.

I take medicine because the hole in my shoe is far more interesting than finding x, y and z.

Why does everything get my attention, but nothing ever keep it?

I take medicine because I'd much rather look out the window than learn about American History:

I'm pretty sure that the Battle of Lexington took place in 1783.

Pregnant penguins sleep twenty hours every day.

That's sixteen more than me on a daily basis.

Spiders aren't insects because they have eight legs.

a-squared plus b-squared equals c-squared,

And the cubic root of twenty-seven is three.

I think I left the oven on.

I take medicine to make the sickness go away.

So I don't break out into song.

So I remember what the sickness is called.

So I don't jump at loud noises,

So I don't jump off a bridge -

The world's longest bridge is over 13 miles long.

I take medicine to make me indecisive,

To reduce my impulsivity,

To keep my head in less than two million, six-hundred and fourteen different places
My name is Sherrie Stersang and I just wanted to take a minute to send you a note and follow up on our conversation from yesterday. It was great to finally connect in person!

I'll be your personal sales coach, so please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.

Looking forward to working together!

Sincerely,

Sherrie Stersang
Northeast Regional Manager
SalesSales

 

Old News, Good News?

 

By the time you read this the decision will be made. In the last two weeks of March, high level bi-partisan negotiations by House leadership will have taken place about Medicare Physician Payment Reform. As of March 31, 2015 the current fee schedule for physician payment is set to expire. According the AMHCA the recent breakdown in GOP unity created a real opportunity for major progress on Medicare physician payment reform as opposed to short term extensions which has been the recent trend. This legislation is the vehicle that AMHCA targeted to carry Medicare Provider Status for LMHC's.

Hopefully the news is good!! The best news would that a permanent replacement for the physician payment formula was achieved and our legislation is part of the deal. If that's the case the battle was won!! The road is paved for Medicare Provider Status for LMHC's. If not, go to www.amhca.org to the Advocacy tab for information on contacting your U.S. senators and representatives.

 

 

 

 

 

 
Evolution of Ethics Dialogue in FMHCA

 


            As many of you have become aware, we are continuing our ongoing series of free webinars provided to the membership of FMHCA. The next webinar will be presented by Dr. Scott Laurence:
"Counseling for Trauma & Addictive & Related Disorders."   We hope you will attend.

            If you attended my webinar in January, sponsored by FMHCA, you heard me speak about the transition through which our profession organization are going. In keeping with the transitional/evolutionary growth of our field, we on the board are trying to embrace, with understandable trepidation and difficulty, some of the changes and dynamics of growth that will hopefully carry us forward, not only as the fastest growing of the mental health professions, but hopefully becoming the best of the mental health professions. Thus, as chair of the ethics committee, I have striven to improve the way ethics is viewed and administered, at least at the level of our organization. Essentially what I've done is to try to make us available to each other as professionals to discuss ethics in a nonthreatening, constructive and supportive way. This does not mean that we will reduce the quality of our ethics in any way. But what it does mean, is that we, through dialoguing with each other will significantly improve the way we interact with the public as we serve them as counselors. As I have said before, ethics tends to be, at least in my experience, a boring/threatening club, that we got out once in a while to beat ourselves with. instead, I am trying to make it a living breathing thing, that encourages improvement, dialogue and cooperation with each other to maintain the highest standards possible. My first step in doing this was to set forth a goal of making the application of ethics user-friendly.

             At our conference in February I spoke to a member of the 491 board, who asked if we would be willing to field ethical questions that are brought forward to 491 Board to discuss them with licensed professionals who have concerns. I expressed that I would be willing to do that, and discussed with several members of the board that the way we would go about doing this was not to give answers to people, but to discuss the process of thinking about the ethical dilemmas in which we find ourselves so that the counselor can come up with his or her own answer in the best manner possible. Basically, our ethical codes encourage us, as a first step, when we have ethical dilemmas, to consult with peers or higher to discuss ways of dealing with these problems. In doing so, I believe it is incumbent on us not to give specific answers, but to discuss how we think about it clinically, ethically and legally to whatever extent we have knowledge of these three dynamics. In this process of fielding these concerns, I have found a great level of professional thinking and positive experience in processing the dynamics of the problems. In each case, the clinician with whom I spoke was able to discuss the dynamics of their ethical dilemma, and we were able to brainstorm as to how to think about the problem in as many ways as possible. Thus far, it has been a very enjoyable experience, as each one of these people as expressed that the process was very helpful in assisting them to consider all the aspects of their problem, get outside of themselves, but not be told answers as to what to do. Again, each time the feedback has been, "This was very helpful." I believe when we reach out to each other to solve ethical problems in a user-friendly way the outcome is very positive and "helpful." In several of the conversations I have asked if I could use their example to publish a newsletter, to assist our members in potential problems that they might come upon. One of the problems, which I was given permission to use in the newsletter is as follows:

            A Licensed Mental Health Counselor called and stated,  "Generally speaking, my question pertains to referrals and guarantees when you are talking about an educational program, provided by myself, that clearly states in informed consent language that the participant is not entering into a client/therapist relationship.  I know that one cannot provide referral kickback fees or guarantee the outcome of one's psychotherapeutic work, but I wasn't sure if it applied equally to educational programs offered by the practitioner."

            The Licensed Mental Health Counselor stated that she had on her website psychoeducational material that provided information to the viewer about psychological issues and potential solutions. The Counselor stated that she believed that this information could cause clients to seek out physicians regarding some of the information provided in the written pieces on the website. She was asking if, since she had never formally seen any of the readers as clients, she could perhaps visit the local physicians and offer them a referral fee if they referred any of these readers to her as a Counselor. She wondered whether this would be considered a kickback.

             in discussing this with her we were able to examine the situation a little more objectively. My first question to her was, "What does she know about the rules regarding kickbacks?" She stated that she understood that kickbacks are not allowed, but the question was whether or not this was a kickback. Again, not giving her answers as to what I thought, nor, most especially, any policy established by FMHCA, (as that is not our role), we discussed the concept of "propriety" and "impropriety, or the appearance of impropriety." In discussing these issues with a colleague we might take a devil's advocate position, and ask questions, or challenge concepts, essentially debating with each other. This is exactly what we did. In the end there was an additional question posed to the LMHC, which was, "How would you explain or justify this to an attorney on cross examination, or to the 491 Board in an ethics complaint?And asking her how she thought it would "appear" -  proper or improper? In discussing this -- again, without giving her answers, - she decided that, even if it were not a kickback, it could certainly appear that it might be. Consequently, she decided not to visit physicians and offer them a referral fee. At this point we were able to discuss that there would be nothing wrong with her going to physicians and stating that she had put this information on her website, and, thus, they might be having patients come to them asking questions about the information, so that they could know where the information came from, and refer these patients back to her, should they choose to do so. Once again, her statement was that this was a very helpful discussion, and she felt very empowered by being able to clearly decide what she wanted to do.

             It seems like the texture of these dialogues is exactly what we should be doing with each other as a profession - and between the professions. As we move forward, I plan to try to establish this is a process for our ethics committee to continue, and move forward with the assistance of any input from the membership and/or the board as to how to protect us from liability, encourage higher level thinking and higher level ethical behavior in our service to the public. I look forward to dialoguing and with any or all of you about this. And I look forward to the upcoming year!

 

MICHAEL G. HOLLER, MA, NCC, CFMHE, CCCE, CCMHC, LMHC, QCS

President Elect & Ethics Committee Chair, Florida Mental Health Counselors Association (FMHCA)

 

 
Call for 2015 NAADAC Awards Nominations

NAADAC is proud to celebrate and honor the individuals and organizations that have achieved excellence in the substance use disorders field over the past year.  Awards are given in up to six categories and will be presented during the 2015 NAADAC Annual Conference in Washington, D.C. Please submit your nominations by April 30th!

Lifetime Honorary Membership Award: For an individual or entity who has established outstanding service through a lifetime of consistent contributions to the advancement of NAADAC, the addiction profession and its professionals.

Lora Roe Memorial Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselor of the Year: For a counselor who has made an outstanding contribution to the profession of addiction counseling.

Medical Professional of the Year: For a medical professional who has made an outstanding contribution to the addiction profession.

Mel Schulstad Professional of the Year: For an individual who has made outstanding and sustained contributions to the advancement of the addiction counseling profession.

Organizational Achievement Award: For organizations that have demonstrated a strong commitment to the addiction profession and particularly strong support for the individual addiction professional.

William F. "Bill" Callahan Award: For sustained and meritorious service at the national level to the profession of addiction counseling.

Deadline: April 30, 2015


 



 

Bill Relating to Behavior Analysis


 

Per our discussion, I wanted to relay a possible venue for our intern amendment and also provoke discussion regarding this year's behavior analysis bill. 


 

House Bill 449 and Senate Bill 628 would license behavior analysts in the State of Florida. Last year, we opposed these bills alongside the psychologists, as the way the bills were constructed may have infringed upon the LMHC practice. 


 
This year the proposed bills took into account some of those concerns. Not only do the bills carve out protections for LMHCs, but they also offer a BA state board position to another form of practitioner (potentially an LMHC) and make it clear that behavior analysts cannot diagnose.


Due to significant sensitivities from the Florida Legislature to ensure that Floridians can practice to the fullest extent of their education and training and to ensure that behavioral therapies reflect a modernized health care workforce, this licensure bill will most likely pass within the next couple of years. In fact, Senate sponsor is the Chairman of Senate Health Policy. 


This bill also opens a section of law that we need to amend. Those present on tonight's call would like to suggest to the committee to please review the following language and decide to support, oppose or remain neutral. 


If the committee should decide to support or remain neutral, I will ask the lobbyist for the BAs to please ask his client to allow our LMHC intern language to be amended onto the bill. 


 

Thank you for you consideration and leadership.


Senate Staff Analysis:


 

tp://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Documents/loaddoc.aspx?FileName=2015s0628.hp.DOCX&DocumentType=Analysis&BillNumber=0is:h628&Session=2015


 

Bill text:


 

Corinne Mixon

Principal, Mixon & Associates

office: (850) 222-2591


 



 

FMHCA Legislative Update

By Corinne Mixon, FMHCA Lobbyist, Mixon & Associates

 

 

Below you will find information and links to several topics of interest for Florida's mental health counselors.

 

Medicaid and LIP funding - SB 7044

Florida's lack of Low Income Pool funding come July 1st of this year has created a gap in the state budget. The Florida Senate would like to pass a form of Medicaid Expansion (SB 7044) in order to cover this deficit while the House does not want to pass any form of Medicaid Expansion. The Senate Appropriations Committee has gone so far to say that they will not approve additional monies for education and other areas until the LIP funding problem is solved.

Senate Appropriates Subcommittee on Health and Human Services has released two bill drafts that would accomplish the following:

  • Require the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) to create a plan by November 1, 2015 to increase federal Medicaid funds for mental health and substance abuse
  • Add substance abuse to the DCF's list of ailments to target
  • Creates the Forensic Hospital Diversion Pilot Program in Alachua, Escambia, Hillsborough, and Miami-Dade counties that would serve those with mental health or substance abuse disorders who are admitted or at risk of entering a state mental health treatment facility, prisons, jails, or civil mental health treatment facilities.

 

Florida currently ranks 49th among states for mental health spending. Our state currently spends $39.55 per person on mental health, far below the national average of $122.56. An estimated twenty percent of Florida's population (19.5 million) lacks health insurance, leaving many Floridians without the means to receive mental health care. This legislation seeks to increase funding for mental health in Florida and provide a means by which Florida's most vulnerable can receive mental health treatment.

 

Committee bill on mental health and substance abuse treatment -- PCB CFSS 15-01

The following bill makes significant changes to Florida's mental health and substance abuse treatment policies. The language was filed as a "committee bill;" meaning, it is a priority for Florida House leadership and it will be extensively work-shopped by the Children, Family and Seniors Subcommittee. FMHCA's legislative committee is reviewing the recently filed bill and recommends that you review the staff analysis which is provided at the link below.

 

Loan forgiveness for behavioral health workforce - HB 1005

House Bill 1005, among other topics, establishes the Behavioral Health Workforce Loan Forgiveness Program. FHCA's lobbying team heard that the House would be discussing this issue and met with the sponsor, Rep. Kathleen Peters (R-St. Petersburg), prior to the bill being released. FMHCA requested that Rep. Peters include LMHCs in any bill that establishes a new loan forgiveness program for professionals working in mental, behavioral and substance abuse treatment centers. House Bill 1005 includes LMHCs as requested. FMHCA strongly supports this bill.

Bill language -- loan forgiveness language starts on line 377

 

Behavior analyst licensure - SB 628

House Bill 449 and Senate Bill 628 would license behavior analysts in the State of Florida. Last year, we opposed these bills alongside the psychologists and others, as the way in which the bills were constructed may have infringed upon the LMHC practice. 

This year the proposed bills took into account some of those concerns. Not only do the bills carve out protections for LMHCs, but they also offer a BA state board position to another form of practitioner (potentially an LMHC). Lastly, these bills make it clear that behavior analysts cannot diagnose.

Due to significant sensitivities from the Florida Legislature to ensure that Floridians can professionally practice to the fullest extent of their education and training and to ensure that behavioral therapies reflect a modernized health care workforce, this licensure bill will most likely pass within the next couple of years. In fact, Senate sponsor is the Chairman of Senate Health Policy. 


 

 


 


 

FMHCA's 2015 Webinar Series
 

The past two years have been full of significant changes impacting the profession you know and love. DSM-5, ICD-10, new CPT codes, Affordable Care Act, ethical code revisions...how can anyone keep up with this stuff? And what about the latest findings in research on neuroscience and mindfulness? What about those few areas where mental health counselors, who comprise the single largest sector of the behavioral healthcare workforce in the U.S., are still discriminated against (e.g. Medicare, the armed forces)? What's being done about that? How could recent changes in the U.S. healthcare industry impact those of us who work in private practice? What about agency settings? 


 

Keeping up with a field as complex, rich, vital, and diverse as ours is a daunting task, but don't worry! FMHCA's 2015 webinar series is dedicated to giving you concise and practical updates from experts in a range of relevant topics so that you can keep updated with our rapidly evolving profession. Attendance is FREE to FMHCA members as a new benefit of membership, and CEUs will be available at a nominal cost of $10 for FMHCA members or $30 for non- members to participate and receive CEU credits. Not a member? You can join now at www.flmhca.org.


Also, you may want to take a look at others planned for 2015
May 8th 2-4 pm - DSM-5, ICD-10, Third Party Payers & Insurance: Oh My!!
July 24th 2-4 pm - PTSD Remediation Using EEG Biofeedback
September 25th 2-4 pm - Mindful Psychotherapeutic Practice
October 23rd 2-4 pm - Importance of Legislative & Grassroots Lobbying, Current State of LMHC Scope of Practice
December 4th 2-4 pm - Counseling & Advocacy for Individuals with Disabilities
  

 FMHCA  2015-2016 Board of Directors.

Officers of the Association will be nominated and elected annually consistent with policy established by the board and adhering to the following schedule:
 
March 1: Publication of "Call for Nominations"
May 1: Publication of list of nominees and a procedure for voting
June 1: Deadline for completion of voting procedure
July 1: Newly elected officers assume office

Serving in the FMHCA Board is one of the most important contributions you can make to your organization, your profession, and the public.  We continue to grow and are looking for dedicated members to carry the torch.

 

On behalf of the FMHCA Nominations and Elections Committee, it is my pleasure to invite all FMHCA members to submit nominations for candidates to serve on the 2015 - 2016 Board of Directors for the following positions:

  • President-Elect
  • Secretary
  • Treasurer
  • Member-at-Large (2 positions)

If you or somebody you know would like to be considered for one of these positions, please e-mail your nominations no later than 7:00 p.m. EST on April 12, 2015 to:

Dr. Carlos Zalaquett, LMHC at carlosz@usf.edu. You will receive a confirming email.

 

Nomination Requirements: Provide the person's name, email, and the phone number and send to Dr. Carlos Zalaquett. You can nominate more than one person for each position.


 

We look forward to receiving your nominations.

 

Sincerely yours,


 

Nominations & Elections Committee 

Carlos Zalaquett, Chair 

Michael Holler

Kathie Erwin

Frank Hannah

 

 

 

    



Become a FMHCA Member! 

FMHCA invites all mental health professionals to become a part of our organization so your voice can be heard and you can enjoy a strong network of professionals in our state.  There are two ways to join -- via our website or via the AMHCA website.

 

Clinical members may join both FMHCA and AMHCA with UNIFIED DUES of just $234.00.   To take advantage of dual membership, you must join through AMHCA.  Visit www.amhca.org and join online.

 

Others may join via www.flmhca.org by downloading a membership form and mailing it with your payment, or you may make a payment directly through our website.  Keep in mind we have a few membership options:

 

$96.00 Clinical - All LMHC's or CCMHC's

$80.00 Regular - All registered interns or non-licensed professionals

$40.00 Student - Full time graduate student

$40.00 Retired Clinicians - License Retired

If your FMHCA membership expired in January, we remind you to renew today by going to our membership page.

 


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