State of Maryland

A PSCS Alcohol and Drug (A/D) Associate Counselor is the full performance level of work, at the certified Bachelor’s Degree level, counseling clients with substance use disorders by using intervention, treatment and rehabilitation in the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (PSCS).  Employees in this classification do not supervise other PSCS Alcohol and Drug Counselors.  

Employees in this classification receive general supervision from a PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor Supervisor or other supervisor approved by the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists.  Employees in this classification may be required to work evenings and weekends.  The work is performed in addictions programs located in State institutions and facilities, such as jails, detention centers, prisons, 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 PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor is differentiated from the PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor Provisional on the basis of certification status and supervisory control exercised by the supervisor over these employees.  The PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor is certified and performs the full range of duties and responsibilities under general supervision.  The PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor Provisional is noncertified and learns to perform duties under close supervision.  The PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor is differentiated from the PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor Lead in that the PSCS Alcohol and Drug Associate Counselor Lead assigns, reviews and approves the work of and trains lower-level PSCS Alcohol and Drug Counselors. 

Provides counseling and case management services to clients with substance use disorders with moderately complex problems as defined by standard treatment criteria;

Provides group counseling to clients with substance use disorders;

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;

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

Performs other related duties.

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 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;

Ability to make effective presentations to a variety of audiences;

Ability to document client information accurately;

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 ascribe the role of family, social networks, self-help groups and community systems in the treatment and recovery process;

Ability to adapt clinical practice to the range of treatment settings and modalities;

Ability to apply crisis management skills to client crises;

Ability to apply setting-specific policies and procedures to clinical practice;

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

Ability to make constructive therapeutic responses when the client's behavior is inconsistent with stated recovery goals.

Education:     Determined by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists under the requirements for Certified Associate Counselors.  

Experience:   Determined by the Maryland State Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists under the certification requirements for Certified Associate Counselors.

1. In accordance with Health Occupations Title 17 and Code of Maryland Regulations 10.58.07, candidates must be certified by the Board of Professional Counselors and Therapists as a Certified Associate Counselor.  

2. Employees in this classification may be assigned duties which require the operation of a motor vehicle.  Employees assigned such duties will be required to possess a motor vehicle operator’s license valid in the State of Maryland.  

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.  

This is a Professional Service classification in the State Personnel Management System.  All positions in this classification are Professional Service positions.  Some positions in Professional Service classifications may be designated Special Appointment in accordance with the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 6-405.  

This classification is assigned to bargaining unit E, Health Care Professional classes.  As provided by the State Personnel and Pensions Article, Section 3-102, special appointment, temporary, contractual, supervisory, managerial and confidential employees are excluded from collective bargaining.  Additionally, certain executive branch agencies are exempt from collective bargaining and all positions in those agencies are excluded from collective bargaining.