During graduate school, I was required to track my practicum and internship hours, via a chart, and have my site supervisor sign off and submit them to my professor, each semester. Like many post-graduates and registered interns, I only assumed that this would be similar to how my hours for licensure would be submitted to the state. However, after spending several months searching for the “chart”, on the Department of Health’s website, I would only come to realize that what I had learned in school is quite different from the real world.
Here is what you need to know, about keeping track of, turning in and submitting your hours for licensure:
1. In order to understand how to keep track of your hours, you first need to know what will be required to be submitted, in order to become fully licensed. So, according to the current LMHC application process (in regards to submitting documentation for the required 1500 hours) it only states that we submit/request our supervisor/s complete a Supervised Experience Attestation Form (This form can be found on the http://floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov/ website under the resource section and then under the forms link).
2. Being that the Supervised Experience Attestation Form is currently the only form used and required by the board, to submit proof of completion, of your registered internship hours. You personally will not be required to keep track of your own hours such as, a chart documenting indirect and direct hours. However, it is a safe practice and protection for yourself, as you begin your registered internship hours, to go ahead and keep track of your hours on your own. There are numerous examples and templates, out there, or you can even create your own. However, you decide to keep track of your hours, will be completely up to you. The reason for keeping track of your own hours, even though it is not required, is in case you are ever audited or questioned about it later.
3. Once you have completed 100 hours of supervision and 1500 hours of client contact hours and you are ready to submit your hours for your full licensure, the only thing that will be needed is for your Qualified Supervisor to fill out one of these Supervised Experience Attestation Forms and submit it for you.
That’s it! I know, a lot simpler than I imagined as well! So, a few pointers to remember. More than likely you will change Qualified Supervisors, more than once, and/or lose your Qualified Supervisor due to unforeseen circumstances. It is always a smart practice to have your Qualified Supervisor submit a Supervised Experience Attestation Form for you every few months. Also, as soon as you change Qualified Supervisors make sure to have your previous Supervisor submit a form for you. Another good tip is to make sure you receive a copy of each Supervised Experience Attestation Form, which is submitted on your behalf, to keep with your own files. Anything can happen or come up so, you don’t want to take any chances, with losing any of your hard earned hours! Better safe than sorry!
Jessica Richards is a Registered Mental Health Counselor Intern for the State of Florida. As a graduate of NOVA Southeastern University, she holds a master's degree in Mental Health Counseling. She currently contracts with local community agencies to obtain hours for full LMHC licensure, while working on establishing her private practice, Peace of Mind Counseling. Both located in Orlando, Florida.
Jessica,
I agree totally with Registered Interns tracking their clinical hours and their hours of supervision. How else would they ‘prove’ that the required number of practice hours have been complete?
I would like to add a suggestion for Registered Interns. In the training I provide for licensed mental health professionals to become Qualified Supervisors, I strongly encourage them to turn in a completed for with “hours of supervision-to-date” from time to time. I personally complete forms for my supervisees whenever I complete one page of my log of our meetings. My supervisee and I compare our dates and hours to make sure they match. One log has an average of about 18 hours of supervision (20 lines on the page). The reason I do this is that there is no guarantee that I will be able to complete the whole 100 hours of supervision. Furthermore, I could become incapacitated, pass away or have a family emergency that pulls me out of state for an extended time. I feel more secure that I have taken this little step to be more thorough. An added benefit to the Registered Intern is that if there is ever a conflict with the Qualified Supervisor he or she need not fear that all of their supervision hours could be lost. There have been a number of times where a Registered Intern has completed many if not all of their hours and the Qualified Supervisor has refused to sign confirming the hours of supervision.
Thank you for this information. I have been looking all over to see what I need to do to document my hours. Thanks again.