Dear Substance Abuse Professional,
I hope everyone is having a peaceful transition to cooler weather and the holiday preparations are smooth!
Below are two important items of interest to our substance abuse professionals. Please take a moment to read and share the contents of this edition of the Board Buzz!
Barden Culbreth
Associate Director
NCSAPPB
2011 Examinations… The Real Deal!
There are a lot of stories going around about the new examination format for 2012 and beyond.
As you will recall, the NCSAPPB moved to computer-based testing mid-2011. Through a partnership by the International Credentialing and Reciprocity Consortium and Schroeder Measurement Technologies, the Board is now able to offer flexibility to our applicants in regard to time, date, and location of their professional exams.
- First, an applicant sends in their monies and hours in order to qualify for the examination.
- During the next scheduled File Review (typically 3-4 week rotations), the staff approves the applicant for the exam.
- The applicant then receives a letter asking them to monitor their email for an email from the company SMT/IsoQuality Testing.
- The email outlines the three (3) steps to register for the exam along with a username and password.
Following the October deadline for the December 2011 examination period, all applicants will be moved to Year Round Testing!
For example, if you sent to the Board information to test on October 15th (and missed the December test), you will be reviewed and given a testing block starting January 2, 2012 and ending January 2, 2013.
Here is more good news: This means no more deadlines! No more tracking down supervisors for hours. No more deadlines to get money into the Board office!
However, each applicant will be subject to the file review schedule.
For example, you send in your money and hours on February 6, 2012 and the file review is not until the first week of March 2012, you will be given a 365 day window to test based on the (roughly) March 2012 date. Not 365 days from submission of the money.
This means, in the case of the example above, that if the applicant had set their work and personal schedules to test February 20th, 2012, then chances are they will be out of luck. This is friendly instruction to please plan responsibly.
It is responsible planning to send in money and hours at least one (1) month before you plan to test, and even then, do not request time off or set your schedule until you have scheduled your test with the testing center.
Additionally, some testing centers have special hours of operation.
Please read these sentences carefully:
If you select a time, date, and location with the testing facility and must reschedule for a reason other than documented medical illness, death of a family member, or military deployment, the Board will be fined for this action. Therefore, if you cancel for any reason other than the ones listed above, you will be charged the FULL AMOUNT OF THE EXAM.
It cannot be expressed how excited the Board staff and Board members are about this new flexibility in testing! It truly does open up a world of opportunity!
Up For Renewal?
Please be advised that renewals for some licenses and certifications are due 1/1/2012.
Since March 2010, the renewal applications are available exclusively online.
The education requirements to renew are:
CSAC/CSAPC/CCJP:
60 hours of CEU (half of which must be SA specific), also consisting of 3 hours Ethics, 3 Hours HIV/AIDS, and 3 hours of any of the following: (i) Nicotine Dependence; (ii) Psychopathology; (iii) Evidence-Based Treatment Approaches; (iv) Substance Abuse Issues In Older Adults; (v) Substance Abuse Issues Affecting Veterans
LCAS:
40 hours of CEU (30 of which must be SA specific), also consisting of 3 hours Ethics and 6 Hours HIV/AIDS
CCS:
15 hours of CEU
CSARFD:
10 hours of CEU
IMPORTANT: Only 50% of your total CEU’s may be earned online.
IMPORTANT #2: Please be sure to include your signed Ethical Code of Conduct and (if applicable) the Practice Supervision Form.
Some debates should invite input from our profession.
Members of the substance abuse community will better serve addicted persons and their families by following issues before our policymakers.
Click to follow the events of the North Carolina General Assembly.
Click to follow the events of Department of Health and Human Services.
Click to follow the events of Department of Insurance.
Sincerely,
Barden Culbreth
Associate Director
North Carolina Substance Abuse Professional Practice Board
