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WHO ARE LICENSED PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS

WHO ARE LICENSED pletion of continuing education


PROFESSIONAL COUNSELORS? credits/hours after obtaining
Licensed professional counselors (or in licensure;
some states, licensed clinical profession- passage of the National Counselor
al counselors or licensed mental health Examination (NCE) or a similar
counselors) provide mental health and state-recognized exam; and
substance abuse care to millions of adherence to a strict Code of Ethics
Americans.
and recognized standards of practice,
Licensed professional counselors
as regulated by the states counselor
(LPCs) are masters-degreed mental
health service providers, trained to work licensure board.
with individuals, families, and groups
in treating mental, behavioral, and WHAT DO LPCS DO?
emotional problems and disorders. The practice of professional counsel-
LPCs make up a large percentage of the ing includes, but is not limited to, the
workforce employed in community diagnosis and treatment of mental and
mental health centers, agencies, and emotional disorders, including addictive
organizations, and are employed within disorders; psychoeducational techniques
and covered by managed care organiza- aimed at the prevention of such disor-
tions and health plans. LPCs also work ders; consultation to individuals, cou-
with active duty military personnel and ples, families, groups, and organizations;
their families, as well as veterans. and research into more effective thera-
peutic treatment modalities.
LPC QUALIFICATIONS
Counselors training in the provision
More than 120,000 professional
of counseling and therapy includes the
counselors are licensed across the coun-
try, under licensure laws enacted in all 50 etiology of mental illness and substance
states, the District of Columbia, and abuse disorders, and the provision of
Puerto Rico. LPC education and train- the well-established treatments of cogni-
ing standards for licensure are on par tive-behavioral, interpersonal, and
with those of the other two masters level psychodynamic therapy. Counselors
mental health providers (clinical social education and training is oriented
workers and marriage and family thera- toward the adoption of a truly client-
pists). State licensure requirements for centered, and not primarily illness-
professional counselors typically include: centered, approach to therapy.
possession of a masters or doctoral Licensed professional counselors and
degree in counseling from a national members of the other non-physician
or regionally-accredited institution mental health professions of psychology,
of higher education, including an
clinical social work, marriage and family
internship and coursework on
therapy, and psychiatric nursing provide
human behavior and development,
effective counseling strategies, the large majority of mental health
ethical practice, and other core services in the U.S. Roughly one in
knowledge areas; four Americans suffer from a diagnos-
completion of a minimum of 3,000 able mental disorder in a given year, and
hours of post-masters degree super- about one in five Americans experience
vised clinical experience, performed a mood disorder such as depression at
within two years, and periodic com- some point in the course of their life.
HOW TO FIND A LICENSED NEED FOR SERVICES
COUNSELOR 45.1 million adults (19.9%) in the In 2009, an estimated 8.4 million
To search for a licensed counselor United States had mental illness in adults (3.7%) age 18 or older had
online, visit The Therapy Directory on the past year. Of those, nearly 8.9 serious thoughts of suicide in the
the Psychology Today website at http:// million (20%) also had a substance past year. 2.2 million adults made
therapists.psychologytoday.com/rms/. You use disorder. suicide plans in the past year and
can search by zip code, area of 11 million adults (4.8%) had seri- approximately 1 million adults
specialty, and/or other criteria. Two ous mental illness (SMI)a diag- attempted suicide in the past year.
other common ways to find a licensed nosable mental disorder that sub-
counselor are by word-of-mouth and by stantially interfered with or limited Substance Abuse and Mental Health
looking in the yellow pages (typically one or more major life activities Services Administration. (2010). Results
under counseling or counselors; in the past year. from the 2009 National Survey on Drug
marriage and family counseling; or Less than 4 in 10 adults with men- Use and Health: Mental Health Findings
mental health services). Look for tal illness in the past year received (Office of Applied Studies, NSDUH
individuals who identify themselves as a mental health services. Series H-39, HHS Publication No.
Licensed Professional Counselor or In 2009, 14.8 million people (6.5% SMA 10-4609). Rockville, MD.
LPC. While some states have a varia- of adults aged 18 or older) had at
tion of this title, the key words to look least one major depressive episode
for are licensed and counselor. during the past year.
Your states counselor board website In 2009, 2 million youths (8.1%
can let you know the specific designa- of the population aged 12 to 17)
tion in your state. Go to http://www. had at least one major depressive
counseling.org/Counselors/Licensure episode during the past year.
AndCert.aspx to find a directory
of state counselor licensure boards,
including their phone number and
internet address. Many state board web
sites include search functions which let Copyright 2011
you verify the licensure of individual American Counseling Association
practitioners.

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