Professional Disclosure Statement

Effective October 1, 1990 , the Michigan Public Health Code, Act 368 of 1978, Article 15, Part 181, Section 18105 (2) indicates that "a person shall not engage in the practice of counseling unless licensed or otherwise authorized under this article." The Counseling staff at Lake Superior State University is licensed and comply with ACT 368, as amended. This same section requires that a licensed counselor furnish particular types of information within a professional disclosure statement to all prospective clients before engaging in counseling services. Licensed Professional Counselors are regulated in Michigan through the Michigan Department of Commerce, Board of Counseling, P.O. Box 30018 , Lansing , MI 48909 . Phone: (517) 335-0918.

Disclosure statements have the clients' best interests in mind. They are intended to inform a prospective client about the unique as well as common qualifications, style of beliefs, and limitations of each counselor so that the client can make an intelligent decision regarding the use of that particular counselor's services. Consequently, please take some time to carefully read all the information provided.

DESCRIPTION OF COUNSELING AND DISABILITY SERVICES AND POLICIES COMMON TO ALL LSSU LICENSED COUNSELORS

CONFIDENTIALITY

A client's trust through confidentiality is taken very seriously by the entire licensed counseling staff for ethical and legal reasons. Michigan statute (MCLA-600.2165), the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 (FERPA), and Public Health Code Part 181 - Sec. 18117 qualifies the confidential relations and communications between a licensed professional counselor or a limited licensed counselor and a client as privileged and therefore shall not be considered as being required to be disclosed except as otherwise provided by law. Generally, confidential information may be disclosed only upon consent of the client, if the client is 18 years or over. At the Counseling Center , this philosophy is applied to all clients, regardless of nationality or statehood.

Parents or guardians of minors hold privilege, and are entitled to information communicated to the counselor by their children. If the client is a minor, parents or legal guardians can provide consent for disclosure of minor client's records or communication.

All counselors also adhere closely to the ethical standard established by the American Counseling Association (ACA), Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice (7/95), Section B.1.C.

"The general requirement that counselors keep information confidential does not apply when disclosure is required to prevent clear and imminent danger to the client or others or when legal requirements demand that confidential information be revealed. Counselors consult with other professionals when in doubt as to the validity of an exception."

Regardless of the situation, it can always be expected that all information entrusted in the counselor will be handled in such a fashion as to be within all current legal and ethical doctrines available and will serve the best interests of the counselee.

OFFICE HOURS

Except as otherwise indicated on the Counseling Center's front door, the regularly scheduled working hours of the Counseling Center are 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.

SERVICES AVAILABLE

All services relate to four distinct areas: educational, career, personal (non-clinical) counseling and disability services. Limited short and long-term personal non-clinical counseling support is available; however, the clinical personal therapeutic services are restricted primarily to providing assistance in intake and referral to the clinical therapeutic resources available in the area.

Student Educational Counseling

Examples of educational counseling include: 1) helping to understand University policy and guidelines stated within the catalog and 2) scheduling and academic advising assistance for undeclared majors.

Student Career Counseling

Through its program involving a comprehensive battery of tests with follow-up career exploration activities, our Center provides assistance to those needing help with career decision making.

Disability Services

The Counseling and Disability Services department houses a Resource Center for Students with Disabilities (RCSD). RCSD provides accommodated testing/proctoring for students with a disability. Also provided is help with assistive learning technology support, advocacy and assistance in obtaining testing and documentation, and filing such documentation. In support of RCSD, an interdisciplinary advisory group including community and student representation meets regularly to discuss issues and policy considerations related to disability support at the University. The RCSD advisory group consults with University administration and listens to student concerns. A proactive approach is incorporated assuring compliance with ADA and public law 504.

Student Personal Non-Clinical Counseling

University students are provided with many new opportunities and choices, both academic and social. This freedom can often lead to burdens of unexpected confusion and perhaps even great dismay. Everyone from time to time feels overwhelmed by problems that can be difficult to cope with alone. The professional staff at the Counseling Center does not want students to feel alone when in need of support. They believe in unconditional acceptance and are there to help students identify, clarify and rally their own resources in successfully coping. With the assistance of our staff, problems are turned into opportunities for personal growth.

The Center offers several sections throughout the year of a course SA150) Personal Growth Seminar, which provides non-threatening group sessions for students interested in personal and inter-personal growth. You will find our counselors short on "advice" and long on empathic listening and sensitivity. They will not solve your problems for you, nor will they enable you to feel reliant upon them. They will, however, provide you with approachability, honesty, and information where appropriate and timely, facilitate your development of your own insight, and assist you in weighing the consequences of options as you make your own decisions.

The license of the professional counseling staff and the limits of scope of personal support services available at L.S.S.U. restricts the staff's practice from involvement in short or long-term clinical therapeutic practice. The counseling staff is qualified to assist where necessary with intake and referral associated with crisis intervention and are available only to provide the kind of personal support which deals exclusively with counseling concerns which generally do not entail any unreasonable, clear, present, imminent or potential imminent danger to the client, counselor or to others. For emergencies associated with such potential or present imminent danger, the counseling staff shall assist in the referral of the student client to an appropriate clinical therapist. (See "Limitations of Services" for further background).

FEES AND ELIGIBILITY FOR SERVICES

Being a University-supported department, the services available through the center are generally restricted to student members of the campus community:

Student Educational Counseling

All currently enrolled full and part-time students may receive all educational counseling services free of charge with one exception: those taking SA100, "How to Succeed in College" are responsible for paying all related tuition and enrollment costs associated with this course.

Student Career Counseling

Counselors are available to discuss the career counseling needs of all currently enrolled full and part-time students free of any charge.

Student Personal Non-Clinical Counseling

In order to be eligible for limited personal non-clinical counseling services (except for SA150) without charge, clients must: 1) have gone through LSSU's formal application procedure, and 2) must be currently enrolled for at least an average of nine (9) credit hours each semester.

Those persons interested in taking SA150, "Personal Growth Seminar," are responsible for paying all related tuition and enrollment costs associated with the course.

PLEASE NOTE : Those students who have withdrawn from L.S.S.U. after a full or part-time enrollment must meet the same eligibility and fee requirements as are required of any other potential clients in the general public.

LIMITATIONS OF SERVICES

The licensed counseling staff at the Center have backgrounds as generalists in guidance and counseling which particularly qualifies them in the areas of non-clinical therapeutic, career and academic counseling. Our staff does not have the kind of therapeutic clinical background that psychiatrists, psychologists, substance abuse counselors, marriage or family therapists have. The professional counselors are not licensed to hold themselves out as a psychologist, or as a marriage and family counselor providing marriage counseling as defined in section 18201 of ACT 368 and pursuant to section 1501 of the occupational code, Act #299 of the Public Acts of 1980. The ACA Code of Ethical Standards of Practice - 7/95 (A.11.b) further stipulates that:

"If counselors determine an inability to be of professional assistance to clients, they avoid entering or immediately terminate a counseling relationship. Counselors are knowledgeable about referral resources and suggest appropriate alternatives. If clients decline the suggested referral, counselors should discontinue the relationship."

It should be further emphasized that the above ethical standard refers to the possibility that the client declines the suggested referral. Counselors cannot enforce a suggested referral and the ethical code states that the counselor should discontinue the relationship under such circumstances. Therefore, the counselor does not hold an obligation for the consequences, which are associated with such forms of client non-compliance.

As licensed professional counselors, our counseling staff can be expected to be skilled in:

"...determining the need for referral to one or more statutorily regulated mental health professionals whose expertise, skills, and competence are appropriate to the problems of the individual, informing the individual of the referral, and communicating as appropriate with the professional to whom the individual has  been referred." (Part 181, Counseling, Public Health Code 333, Sec. 18101, x).

Personal counseling in the form of crisis intervention will by in large be left to qualified community resources. LSSU's counseling staff will restrict its crisis intervention involvement to assisting where necessary and possible in connecting the particular "at-risk" client directly and immediately with local mental health professionals.

Consequently, on occasion a counselor may determine that a client should be referred to another health care professional who has greater specialized expertise and skill in the area of the client's concern. Every effort is made to assure that such referral is done with the client's cooperation and consent. Referrals should be expected in cases where there is general clinical personal therapeutic need or the presence of severe, serious emotional or personality distress. Specifically, the moment there is adequate criteria to believe that the client exhibits or possesses an unreasonable physical or emotional risk to their own well-being which is potentially life-threatening or is potentially life-threatening to the well-being of the counselor or to others, a referral can be expected to be made immediately to a mental health specialist for either further diagnosis or clinical treatment. Our counseling staff is equipped to work closely and discreetly with other agencies under those circumstances where referral is necessary and appropriate.

Revised: March 2004

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