As the importance of mental health for children, youth, and adults is better understood, the nationwide mental health crisis is increasingly acknowledged. As a mental health practitioner, you know that counseling and therapy can ease suffering for individuals and families experiencing depression, anxiety, grief, stress, addiction, or any other mental health condition. You and your colleagues provide a confidential opportunity for your clients to identify and honor emotions, negotiate and develop boundaries, strategies, and goals, and acknowledge, confront, and treat substance abuse, trauma, and other obstacles.
Whether your practice is based in one of Nebraska's larger cities, such as Lincoln or Omaha, or a smaller community, you show up for your clients. Your clients know the therapeutic care you provide supports their growth and resilience now and in the future. As you champion your patients and their mental health during unprecedented times, it can be devastating to learn that a professional misconduct complaint has been filed against you. You know how to advocate for your clients and their best interests, but now you need to fight to protect yourself, your practice, and your future.
The Lento Law Firm defends mental health practitioners and social workers who are targeted by a license disciplinary investigation in Nebraska. If you are the target of a misconduct allegation, the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team is the partner you need. Regardless of the circumstances or allegations, we can fight to protect you and your professional license. To discuss your case with our experienced attorneys, call the Lento Law Firm offices at 888-535-3686 or contact us online.
Mental Health Practitioner Licensing in Nebraska
In Nebraska, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), through its Division of Public Health and Board of Mental Health and Social Work Practice (the Board), is responsible for the licensing and practice of mental health practitioners. The Division of Public Health's Office of Professional & Occupational Investigations oversees inquiries related to license applications and complaints involving licensed mental health care providers.
In Nebraska, there are four primary credentials for mental health care providers:
- Provisionally Licensed Mental Health Practitioners: an individual who needs to obtain 3,000 hours of supervised experience in mental health practice.
- Provisional Certification as a Master Social Worker: an individual who needs to obtain 3,000 hours of supervised experience in social work in Nebraska.
- Licensed Independent Mental Health Practitioner: an individual who may diagnose and treat major mental illnesses and disorders without supervision or consultation.
- Licensed Mental Health Practitioner: an individual who is not authorized to diagnose major mental illnesses or disorders except in consultation with a licensed independent mental health practitioner, qualified physician, or licensed clinical psychologist.
Additionally, Nebraska issues certification to authorize the use of the professional titles of Social Worker, Master Social Worker, Professional Counselor, and Marriage and Family Therapist. Nebraska refers to these licenses and certifications collectively as credentials.
At the Lento Law Firm, we advocate for mental health care providers who are accused of misconduct. If you are in Nebraska and a complaint has been made against you, our Professional License Defense Team can help you protect your license and your livelihood.
Professional Conduct and Allegations of Misconduct in Nebraska
Therapists, counselors, and other mental health practitioners devote years of their lives to studying and gaining the clinical experience necessary to provide mental health care for clients. From coursework and internships to developing their practices, mental health providers learn to serve their clients through extremely stressful, vulnerable, and uncertain times.
Effective mental health care rests on a foundation of trust. The therapeutic relationship between a mental health practitioner and their client must be free from manipulation, coercion, and dishonesty.
Nebraska laws and regulations seek to minimize the risk of exploitation by requiring that credentialed mental health providers conduct themselves with integrity and avoid behavior that jeopardizes the therapeutic relationship or exploits clients. Nebraska's standards of professional conduct include:
Competency
Credentialed professionals may not provide care outside the scope of their training and experience. Additionally, mental health practitioners should never encourage untrained or unqualified individuals to provide mental health services, social work, professional counseling, or marriage therapy.
Confidentiality
In most cases, a credentialed mental health provider must not disclose information acquired from a client or patient. Even potential clients requesting care are due confidentiality in most circumstances.
Anti-Discrimination
Licensed and certified mental health practitioners must provide care without discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex, disability, marital status, national origin, age, familial status, or ancestry.
Dual Relationships
Credential professionals should avoid dual relationships, which include business or close personal relationships, with clients that could increase the risk of exploitation or impair their professional judgment, such as sexual intimacy or contact and exploitation.
Record Keeping
Client records must be kept, safeguarded, and destroyed to maintain confidentiality and in a manner otherwise consistent with regulations. Specific records, including informed consent agreements and documentation of the service provided, should be maintained. Clients should be allowed access to their records.
Professional Relationships
A credentialed mental health practitioner or social worker must protect the welfare and maintain a professional relationship with clients and patients. The following behavior constitutes unprofessional conduct:
- Exploiting a person for personal advantage
- Performing or agreeing to perform mental health services, social work, professional counseling, or marriage and family therapy when such services are contraindicated or unjustified.
- Performing or agreeing to perform procedures that are outside of the professional's scope of practice.
- Verbally or physically abusing clients or patients.
- Failing to make a referral when a referral is in the client's best interest.
- Delegating client services that require clinical skills or expertise of a credential holder.
- Failure to safeguard the patient's or client's dignity.
- Endangering client safety.
If any professional misconduct allegation is made against you, take it seriously. Let the Lento Law Firm Professional License Defense Team partner with you to prepare a comprehensive defense strategy.
What is the Professional License Disciplinary Process in Nebraska?
The Lento Law Firm defends therapists, mental health counselors, and social workers targeted by disciplinary investigations, hearings, and sanctions throughout Nebraska. We know that any threat to your license is a threat to your livelihood and future.
In Nebraska, the inter-agency license disciplinary process involves multiple offices, including DHHS, its Chief Medical Officer, the Board, and the Office of the Attorney General.
Complaint
Anyone can file a complaint with Nebraska's DHHS against a licensed or certified mental health professional. After receiving a complaint, DHHS determines if the allegations are legally sufficient to warrant an investigation by considering the following:
- Does the complaint relate to a matter that DHHS has the authority to investigate?
- Was the complaint filed in good faith?
- Was the complaint delayed for too long to justify a present-day investigation?
- Is the complainant willing to be a witness and testify?
- Is it possible to obtain evidence from other sources?
- Does the complaint provide an adequate and reasonable basis to believe that the allegation, if demonstrated by clear and convincing evidence, is a violation that requires a sanction?
If there is adequate reason to believe the complaint warrants further inquiry, an investigation begins.
Investigation
The DHHS investigates, and the investigator prepares a report for the Board. The Board will review the report and recommend a response to the Office of the Attorney General.
Review by the Office of the Attorney General
The Attorney General reviews each investigation to determine if there is clear and convincing evidence that the accused mental health provider has violated a law or regulation. If there is adequate evidence, the Attorney General may:
- File a petition with the DHHS to discipline the credentialed professional through formal disciplinary action.
- Negotiate a voluntary surrender or voluntary limitation of the license or other credential.
- Enter into an assurance of compliance with the credentialed mental health provider instead of filing a petition.
The credential holder may deny the allegations in the petition and request an administrative hearing.
Administrative Hearing
An administrative hearing is held before a hearing officer. After the hearing, the officer makes findings of facts and conclusions of law. Additionally, the hearing officer makes a recommendation to Nebraska's Chief Medical Officer (CMO) about the disposition of the case.
The CMO has the authority to:
- Dismiss the case.
- Approve or reject the agreed-upon settlement or voluntary surrender agreement.
- Issue a discipline order against the credentialed professional.
Sanctions
The discipline order may include a broad range of sanctions, such as censure, civil fine, limitation on license, probation, and suspension or revocation of license.
Appeal Rights
The credentialed professional may have a right to appeal to the district court.
For an accused mental health provider or social worker, Nebraska's license disciplinary process can be long, arduous, and contentious. If you face a disciplinary allegation, let the Lento Law Firm partner with you in developing a comprehensive defense strategy.
How Can the Lento Law Firm Defend Your License and Your Future?
In Nebraska, DHHS is not concerned with protecting you, your license, or your career. Disciplinary investigations and hearings are adversarial. If you are the target of a disciplinary complaint, your first step must be building a defense team to challenge the allegations against you. At the Lento Law Firm, our experienced license defense attorneys can defend you and your license through any investigation or hearing by:
- Ensuring the DHHS meets its notice and due process requirements.
- Representing you before DHHS, the Attorney General, the hearing officer, and the CMO.
- Preparing you for any interview or interaction with the investigator and to give testimony during a deposition or hearing.
- Performing our own investigation to identify mitigating evidence and exonerating witnesses.
- Negotiating a voluntary surrender, voluntary limitation, assurance of compliance, or settlement agreement on your behalf and ensuring you fully understand the terms of any settlement.
- Developing an appeal strategy, if necessary.
If you are the target of a disciplinary investigation and hearing, the stakes are high. Your license and career are at risk. Do not try to navigate the professional license defense process alone. Every step of Nebraska's investigation and adjudication process requires careful attention. A missed deadline or a careless statement can unnecessarily complicate your case or be treated as an admission of a violation.
The sooner you contact the Lento Law Firm, the sooner we can partner in your defense.
What are the Collateral Consequences of Disciplinary Investigations Proceedings?
In Nebraska, a disciplinary investigation or sanction against your license or certification can undermine your life and career. Allegations alone can tarnish an otherwise stellar reputation and make it more difficult to keep or find employment. If your license is limited, suspended, or revoked, it may be impossible to work in your chosen field. After years of education, clinical internships, and professional practice, you've worked too hard to lose your license and jeopardize your financial security.
Accused professionals often find that disciplinary proceedings extract a huge cost from their personal lives. The stress of an ongoing investigation, the contentious nature of an adversarial hearing, and the uncertainty of its outcome can seem overwhelming and take a toll on your partner, spouse, family, and friends. As you lean on loved ones to offer their support, you can depend on the Lento Law Firm to defend you and your license from a disciplinary investigation and hearing.
At the Lento Law Firm, we protect Nebraska's mental health practitioners and social workers. We know your work is important, and you need a license to continue your calling. Let the Professional License Defense Team help you so that you can continue to support your clients.
Protecting Mental Health Practitioners and Social Workers in Nebraska
We understand that your work is both a profession and a calling. It is profoundly challenging and rewarding to witness your clients as they build safe and satisfying lives. You deserve the same.
When you need help protecting your reputation and your livelihood, the Lento Law Firm is ready. If you are under investigation in Nebraska, our Professional License Defense Team can partner with you and fight on your behalf.
Across Nebraska, we've helped counselors and therapists navigate license investigations, hearings, and sanctions. We can help you, too. Call the Lento Law Firm offices at 888-535-3686 or contact us online to discuss your case.
