State of Maryland

The Alcohol and Drug (A/D) Professional Counselor Advanced is the advanced level of professional alcohol and drug counselor work at Maryland Department of Health (MDH) designated Court Involved (CI) Facilities, at the licensed Master's Degree level, providing counseling services, as an expert in a specialty area, to clients with substance use disorders by using intervention, treatment and rehabilitation.  As an expert in a specialty area, the employee provides instruction, direction and consultation to lower-level Alcohol and Drug Counselors, other professional level counselors and support staff. Employees in this classification do not supervise other Alcohol and Drug Counselors.  

Employees in this classification receive general supervision from an Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Supervisor or a program administrator.  Employees in this classification may be required to work evenings and weekends.  The work is performed in State addictions programs located in State institutions, facilities and offices including inpatient and outpatient facilities, halfway house facilities and community-based programs.

Positions in this classification are evaluated using the classification job evaluation methodology.  The use of this method involves comparing the assigned duties and responsibilities of a position to the job criteria found in the Nature of Work and Examples of Work sections of the class specification.  

The Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Advanced is differentiated from the Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor, in that the Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Advanced performs an advanced level of work in a specialty area while the Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.  The Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Advanced is differentiated from the Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Supervisor in that the Alcohol and Drug Professional Counselor Supervisor has supervisory responsibility for lower-level Alcohol and Drug Counselors.

Provides counseling and case management services to clients with substance use disorders as a specialist in a defined treatment or population area, such as family counseling services or services to clients with co-occurring disorders;

Advocates for client services, collaborates with other disciplines involved in providing client treatment and coordinates all treatment activities with services provided to the client by other resources;

Evaluates client progress in implementing the treatment plan, and makes appropriate changes to ensure progress;

Screens clients with substance use disorders to determine the most appropriate initial course of action with regard to substance treatment;

Assesses clients with substance use disorders to gather and interpret information necessary for planning treatment and evaluating client progress;

Develops client treatment plans and strategies to obtain the desired treatment outcomes;

Makes referrals to facilitate the client's use of available support systems and community resources in response to needs identified in clinical evaluation;

Identifies and responds to clients in crises;

Provides life skills education relevant to the recovery process to clients with substance use disorders, their families, significant others and community groups;

Documents client information in accordance with accepted principles of client record management;

Provides group counseling to clients with substance use disorders;

Adheres to accepted ethical and behavioral standards of conduct and participates in continuing professional development;

Performs other related duties.  

Knowledge of one or more specialty areas in alcohol and drug counseling, intervention, treatment and rehabilitation as defined by the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration, Maryland State Department of Health and Mental Hygiene;

Knowledge of the philosophy, practices, policies and outcomes of the most generally accepted and scientifically supported models of treatment, recovery, relapse prevention and continuing care for addiction and other substance-related problems;

Knowledge of the established diagnostic criteria for substance use disorders, treatment modalities and placement criteria within the continuum of care;

Knowledge of models and theories of addiction and other problems related to substance use;

Knowledge of the social and cultural context within which addiction and substance abuse exist;

Knowledge of the effects of psychoactive substances on the user, their families and significant others;

Knowledge of ethical and behavioral standards of conduct in the helping relationship;

Knowledge of principles of learning and a variety of educational techniques;

Knowledge of medical and pharmacological resources in the treatment of substance use disorders;

Knowledge of methods of measuring treatment outcome;

Knowledge of federal, State, local and agency policies and procedures governing the delivery of treatment services;

Knowledge of a variety of current and emerging helping strategies for reducing the negative effects of substance use, abuse and dependence;

Skill in tailoring helping strategies and treatment modalities to the client's stage of dependence, change or recovery;

Skill in providing treatment services appropriate to the personal and cultural identity of the client;

Skill in adapting clinical practice to the range of treatment settings and modalities;

Skill in applying crisis management skills to client crises;

Skill in applying setting-specific policies and procedures to clinical practice;

Ability to document client-related information accurately;

Ability to make effective presentations to a variety of audiences;

Ability to establish and maintain working relationships with other professionals and agencies;

Ability to establish and maintain a therapeutic relationship with clients with substance use disorders, their families and significant others;

Ability to identify the support systems and community resources available to clients, their families and significant others;

Ability to identify and use the role of family, social networks, self-help groups and community systems in the treatment and recovery process;

Education:   Determined by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists under the requirements for Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselors or Certified Professional Counselors-Alcohol and Drug on or before September 30, 2008.

Experience: Determined by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists under the requirements for Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselors or Certified Professional Counselors-Alcohol and Drug on or before September 30, 2008.

1. In accordance with Health Occupations Title 17 and Code of Maryland Regulations 10.58.07, candidates placed in this classification must be licensed by the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists as a Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor or as a Certified Professional Counselor-Alcohol and Drug on or before September 30, 2008.  

1. Candidates placed in this classification must possess graded courses in an identified specialty area as defined by the Alcohol and Drug Abuse Administration (ADAA), Maryland State Department of Health. This training must be approved by ADAA. Inquiries concerning this training may be addressed to the Office of Education and Training for Addiction Services, 55 Wade Avenue, Catonsville, Maryland 21228.

2. Employees in this classification are subject to substance abuse testing in accordance with Code of Maryland Regulations 17.04.09, Testing for Illegal Use of Drugs.

Class specifications are broad descriptions covering groups of positions used by various State departments and agencies.  Position descriptions maintained by the using department or agency specifically address the essential job functions of each position.