Course description
The federal confidentiality law and regulations protect the privacy of substance use disorder (SUD) patient records by prohibiting unauthorized disclosures of patient records except in limited circumstances. Congress enacted the legislation in the 1970s to encourage individuals with SUDs to enter and remain in treatment. 42 USC § 290dd-2. The regulations implementing the law are at 42 CFR (Code of Federal Regulations) Part 2 and are commonly referred to as “Part 2.” Part 2 prohibits treatment programs and certain third party recipients from disclosing patient identifying information or records without consent of the client. (SAMHSA, TIP 51, 2009).
This course is designed documents from information gathered from various resources, including SAMHSA and Legal Action Center. Each course chapter includes a reading assignment and a chapter examination.
Course Modality: This is an independent home-study course. Students will take the course according to their own timeline.
Course Completion: To receive the course certificate, each student is required to agree to Student Learning Contract, read all text-based materials, view any media posted, complete and pass course examination, and complete and submit course evaluation.
Note: Posted materials are free from SAMHSA and other public domain sites.
Course fee applies for continuing education hours and a certificate of completion.
Dr. Diane Sherman, Ph.D., a substance abuse profession since 1975, beginning her career while serving in the U.S. Army for in the capacity of Behavioral Science Specialist. She holds the national advanced credential of Master Addiction Counselor, Certified Clinical Supervisor, and Certified Addiction Counselor-II. Dr. Sherman earned her Doctorate in Industrial / Organizational Psychology from Capella University in 2007. Since 2008 she has taught and supervised students who are in pursuit of the certified addiction counselor credential. She is a national, regional and state presenter offering topics relevant to addiction professional, clinical, and ethical practices and clinical supervision. Dr. Sherman is the past President of the Georgia Addiction Counselors Association and recipient of the GACA President’s Award, and Bernard Carter Humanitarian Award. She also served on the board of the Georgia School of Addiction Studies, and in 2015 was honored to receive the Bruce Hoopes Pioneer Award in Addiction Treatment, a personally meaningful award, for excellence in the addiction profession.