21 NCAC 54 .2706 HSP-PA REQUIREMENTS

(a) To be certified as a health services provider psychological associate (HSP-PA), a North Carolina licensed psychological associate shall be qualified by education as set forth in Paragraph (b) of this Rule, and submit a completed, notarized application form. The application form shall include the following information:

(1) applicant's name;

(2) mailing address;

(3) email address;

(4) telephone number;

(5) license number; and

(6) health services provider certification level.

(b) An applicant shall demonstrate that he or she holds a master's, specialist, or doctoral degree which provides an academic foundation in the provision of health services by meeting the following requirements:

(1) The master's, specialist, or doctoral program in psychology shall train individuals to provide health services in psychology.

(2) Course work shall be completed in the areas of assessment, diagnosis, intervention, psychopathology, evaluation, treatment, remediation, or prevention of one or more of the following areas:

(A) mental, emotional, and behavioral disorder, disability, and illness;

(B) substance abuse;

(D) psychological aspects of physical illness, accident, injury, and disability.

(3) An applicant shall be considered to have been trained in the provision of health services in psychology if the applicant establishes that requirements set forth in Subparagraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this Rule have been met through a master's, specialist, or doctoral degree program in psychology in any one of the following areas of specialization in psychology: applied behavior analysis in psychology, applied developmental psychology, clinical psychology, counseling psychology, rehabilitation psychology, school psychology, health psychology, or substance abuse treatment psychology.

(4) If the applicant is unable to establish that he or she has a master's, specialist, or doctoral degree from a program in psychology that provides training in the provision of health services, the applicant shall not be eligible for HSP-PA certification. This shall apply even if the applicant establishes that course work in the areas listed in Subparagraph (b)(2) of this Rule was completed or if the applicant has completed an applied training experience (i.e., practicum, internship, residency, postdoctoral fellowship, etc.) in the provision of health services without having completed a planned and directed training program in health services in psychology.

(5) An applicant who has completed a program in psychology that establishes in institutional publications an intent to train individuals for careers in administration, research, teaching, academia, and other areas not involving training in the provision of health services in psychology shall not be considered to have been provided an academic foundation in the provision of health services and shall not be approved for HSP-PA certification.

(6) Only course work taken at an institution of higher education as defined in G.S. 90-270.136(5) shall be considered by the Board to establish that an applicant has an academic foundation in the provision of health services.

(7) Applicants for HSP-PA shall document that their degree program included an internship, externship, practicum, or supervised field experience at a site providing health services. This supervised training experience shall meet all of the following criteria:

(A) It shall be a planned sequence of training experience, in contrast to on-the-job training, and shall be integrated with the educational program in which the student is enrolled. This supervised training experience shall be planned by the educational program faculty and training site staff rather than by the student.

(B) The supervised training experience shall have a written description detailing the program of training, or a written agreement, developed prior to the time of the training, between the student's educational program and the training site. Such an agreement shall be approved by the student's educational program prior to the beginning of the supervised training experience.

(C) The supervised training experience site shall have a designated and appropriately licensed or certified psychologist or psychological associate responsible for the integrity and quality of the supervised training experience.

(D) A student enrolled in a supervised training experience shall be designated as any of the following: an "intern," "extern," or "practicum student," or shall hold a title which indicates training status for the practice of psychology and provision of health services.

(E) The supervised training experience shall be a minimum of 12 weeks consisting of at least 500 hours of supervised training. At least 400 hours of the training shall be in the provision of health services as defined by G.S. 90-270.136(4) and Rule .2701(a) of this Section.

(F) The supervised training experience shall be completed within a period of 12 consecutive months at not more than two training sites.

(G) Except as provided in Part (b)(7)(H) of this Rule, regularly scheduled individual face-to-face supervision with the specific intent of overseeing the provision of health services shall be provided by a North Carolina licensed or certified psychologist or psychological associate or by a psychologist who is exempt from licensure, pursuant to G.S. 90-270.138(b), at a rate of not less than one hour per week during at least 12 separate weeks of the supervised training experience. The supervisor shall establish and maintain a level of supervisory contact consistent with professional standards and shall be accessible to the student.

(H) If completing a supervised training experience outside of North Carolina, the student shall be provided regularly scheduled individual face-to-face supervision with the specific intent of overseeing the provision of health services by a licensed or certified psychologist or psychological associate or by an individual holding a master's, specialist, or doctoral degree in psychology, at a rate of not less than one hour per week during at least 12 separate weeks of the supervised training experience. The supervisor shall establish and maintain a level of supervisory contact consistent with professional standards and shall be accessible to the student. Proof of the supervisor's license or degree program, as applicable, may be required by the Board to establish the supervisor's training in psychology.

(c) An applicant who is approved for licensure as a Psychological Associate under senior psychologist requirements specified in 21 NCAC 54 .1707 and demonstrates that at least 25 percent of his or her qualifying practice has been in the provision of direct health services, as defined in Rule .2701(a) of this Section, shall be deemed to meet all requirements of this Rule for certification as a health services provider psychological associate (HSP-PA).

History Note: Authority G.S. 90-270.143; 90-270.146(c); 90-270.153(c);

Temporary Adoption Eff. December 19, 1994 for a period of 180 days or until the permanent rule becomes effective, whichever is sooner;

RRC Objection due to lack of statutory authority Eff. May 18, 1995;

Eff. June 21, 1995;

Amended Eff. March 1, 2008; August 1, 2000; August 1, 1996;

Readopted Eff. April 1, 2020;

Amended Eff. August 1, 2021.