Reference no: EM13782567

Assignment 1: Professional Identity

In this module, you learned about the training, preparation, credentials, and scope of work of clinical mental health counselors. In Module 2, you also learned how the work of clinical mental health counselors is similar to and different from other mental health professionals. The significance of the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) and other professional counseling organizations in the development and growth of the counseling profession was also reviewed. Understanding what clinical mental health counselors are trained to do, being knowledgeable of the similarities and differences among therapeutic professions, and recognizing the importance of professional organizations in shaping who counselors are today is important to your development as a professional counselor and expression of a strong professional counselor identity.
Counselors continue to advocate for the counseling profession daily in an attempt to gain parity with other therapeutic professionals. It is important for you to have a clear counselor identity to help further counseling's professional advocacy efforts. As a clinical mental health counselor, you will work alongside other mental health professionals and perform many roles and functions in a variety of practice settings. As you think about what counseling is and what it involves, consider the following scenario.

Scenario:

You are a licensed counselor who just opened a private practice. Marketing and advertising are at the top of your to-do list because attracting clients is an important part of getting your practice off the ground. Your specialty is working with children and adolescents, particularly those who have experienced trauma and abuse.

You are meeting a friend for lunch and agree to meet at his office because it is close to the restaurant. You arrive at his building and while you are waiting for the elevator, you overhear a man and a woman exchange stories about children with whom they work. They describe children who have been bullied, who suffer from low self-esteem, who have attempted suicide, who come from broken homes, and who have limited support systems. Despite these concerns, they allude to the fact that the children live in a relatively affluent part of town. While they are expressing their exasperation over working with so many children with such significant problems, you conclude that the man and the woman are public school administrators. They acknowledge that the students could benefit from professional help but feel like their hands are tied. The male principal states that he asked his school counselor to help but he is not sure the school counselor will be the right person to help.

The elevator arrives. The three of you get in. The man pushes number 25, and you push number 28. You realize that this is a golden opportunity to market yourself and your private practice. After apologizing for eavesdropping on their conversation, you introduce yourself as a licensed counselor who specializes in working with children and adolescents. Immediately after you introduce yourself as a licensed counselor, the female principal asks whether you are a psychologist.
Develop a 60-second elevator speech in response to the female principal's question. Remember, you have only 30 to 60 seconds in the elevator and this is a golden opportunity to let others know what you do as a counselor and how you could possibly be of help. Before submitting your post, you need to review a 60-second elevator speech video.
Click here to view a 60-second elevator speech.

Tasks:
In a minimum of 200 words, respond to the following:
• Explain who you are (a counselor) and what you do as a clinical mental health counselor.
• Describe how what you do might be similar to and, particularly, how it might be different from other mental health professionals' work.
• Explain how what you learned in Module 2 will contribute to your professional growth as a new counselor-in-training.

Your discussion should clearly articulate how you conceptualize clinical mental health counseling (CMHC) and should convey that concept in a manner that others might find helpful.
Support your rationale and analysis by using at least two resources from professional literature in your response. Professional literature may include peer-reviewed journal articles you can access through the Argosy University online library resources; relevant textbooks; and websites created by professional organizations, agencies, or institutions (websites ending in .edu or .gov).
Your discussion posts and all written assignments should reflect graduate-level writing skills and appropriate use of APA style, including in-text citations and references.

Assignment 2: Professional Licensure Plan
In this assignment, you will explore the requirements for licensure in the state( Louisiana) where you plan to practice. You will develop a professional licensure plan (PLP) that helps you outline a sequential timeline for acquiring licensure.

Tasks:

• Explain the requirements and the sequence of the licensure process in the state where you plan to practice. You must cite the source from where you obtain the state licensure information.
• Create your PLP that reflects a detailed timeline of your route to acquiring licensure. Your plan should begin with meeting requirements for the CMHC program.
• Include details on:

o The required graduate course work for licensure in the state where you plan to practice
o The number of required graduate credit hours for licensure in the state
o The names and types (e.g., multiple choice, case scenarios) of the state licensing exams
o The number of years and hours of required experience after you get your master's degree
o The number and types of required supervision hours after the master's experience
o The person who is qualified and approved to provide supervision
o Approved settings for completing the post-masters supervision
o Any other specialty courses you must complete prior to obtaining licensure (e.g., domestic violence, HIV/AIDS, laws and rules, etc.)
o Number of hours of continuing education you must complete in each licensure period in order to have your license renewed
o Crimes that might or would prevent a person from becoming a licensed counselor

• Frame the timeline to include the following:
o When will you attend residencies?
o When will you take your last CMHC program class?
o When will you begin and finish the practicum/internship?
o When will you complete your portfolio?
o When will you graduate from the CMHC program?
o When will you take the state licensing exams?
o When will you meet the experiential and supervision licensure requirements?
o When will you expect to become fully licensed?

Your final product will be a 3- to 5-page Microsoft Word document written in APA format, utilizing at least three scholarly sources. Your paper should be written in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and display accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

Assignment 3: An Ethical Dilemma

In Module 3, you were introduced to the basic minimal standards that govern ethical behavior in clinical practice and in relationships with others as determined by the American Counseling Association (ACA, 2014), the American Mental Health Counseling Association (AMHCA), and the National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC). Additionally, you learned about the ethical decision-making process and the recommended steps to guide clinical mental health counselors in reaching ethical decisions when confronted with ethical dilemmas. Legal issues of an ethical nature in counseling, such as informed consent, were also taught, and case law related to counseling practice and training was taught. For new counselors-in-training, understanding how to apply the code of ethics can be a daunting task. As you prepare for the experiential and field component of your clinical mental health counseling (CMHC) training, it will become an important task. Counselors-in-training are equally responsible for knowing and adhering to counseling codes of ethics as are seasoned professionals. Fortunately, you will have the opportunity to learn more about ethics and counseling in your Professional and Ethical Issues course.
Ethics in counseling is a gray area-it is not black and white as many counselors would like it to be. At some point in your professional counseling career, or perhaps as a practicum student or an intern, you will be faced with an ethical dilemma. As you reflect on the material covered in the module, think about an ethical issue that you might face as a professional counselor.

Tasks:
In a minimum of 200 words, respond to the following:
• Describe an ethical issue you might encounter as a professional counselor in practice. The issue you describe should be relevant to the counseling relationship (Section A of the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics), confidentiality and privacy (Section B of the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics), or professional responsibility (Section C of the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics).
• Indicate to which section your ethical issue is related (A, B, or C) and clearly explain what makes the issue an ethical counseling issue.
• Using an ethical decision-making model and information from Section I of the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics, explain the steps you would take to resolve the ethical issue.
• Explain how what you learned in this module will contribute to your professional growth as a new counselor-in-training.
• Your discussion should clearly reflect your thoughtful and logical analysis of the information.
Support your rationale and analysis by using at least two resources from professional literature in your response. Professional literature may include peer-reviewed journal articles you can access through the Argosy University online library resources; relevant textbooks; and websites created by professional organizations, agencies, or institutions (websites ending in .edu or .gov).

Assignment 4: Ethics Review

In this assignment, you will explore professional counseling ethical codes. You will examine multiple codes of ethics to assist in practicing CMHC in an ethical manner. You will also familiarize yourself with the sections of the codes that govern your responsibilities as a counseling student.

Tasks:
• Compare and contrast the ACA's, the AMHCA's, and the NBCC's codes of ethics.
• Describe your responsibilities as a student as per the ACA's and the AMHCA's codes of ethics.
Your final product will be a 3- to 5-page Microsoft Word document written in APA format, utilizing at least three scholarly sources. Your paper should be written in a clear, concise, and organized manner; demonstrate ethical scholarship in accurate representation and attribution of sources; and display accurate spelling, grammar, and punctuation.