Supervision of affiliates by a qualified supervisor is considerably different than consultation with other professionals. Consultation is solely advisory; consultants do not assume responsibility for those individuals with whom they consult. Supervision of affiliates requires that the qualified supervisor take full ethical and legal responsibility for the quality of work of the affiliate. A qualified supervisor may not supervise more than two affiliates.

(1) Supervision includes, but is not limited to:

(a) Discussion of services provided by the affiliate;

(b) Case selection, treatment plan, and review of each case or work unit of the affiliate;

(c) Discussions regarding theory and practice of the work being conducted;

(d) Review of Washington laws, rules, and criminal justice procedures relevant to the work being conducted;

(e) Discussion of the standards of practice for providers and affiliates as adopted by the department and the ethical issues involved in providing professional services for sex offenders;

(f) Discussion regarding coordination of work with other professionals and parties;

(g) Discussion of relevant professional literature and research; and

(h) Periodic review of the contract.

(2) The qualified supervisor shall:

(a) Avoid presenting himself or herself as having qualifications in areas that he or she does not have qualifications.

(b) Provide sufficient training and supervision to the affiliate to assure the health and safety of the client and community.

(c) Have expertise and knowledge to directly supervise affiliate work.

(d) Assure that the affiliate being supervised has sufficient and appropriate education, background, and preparation for the work he or she will be doing.

(3) The qualified supervisor and affiliate must enter into a formal written contract that defines the parameters of the professional relationship. The contract must be submitted to the department for approval and shall include:

(a) Supervised areas of professional activity;

(b) Amount of supervision time and the frequency of supervisory meetings. This information may be presented as a ratio of supervisory time to clinical work conducted by the affiliate;

(c) Supervisory fees and business arrangements, when applicable;

(d) Nature of the supervisory relationship and the anticipated process of supervision;

(e) Selection and review of clinical cases;

(f) Methodology for recordkeeping, evaluation of the affiliate, and feedback; and

(g) How the affiliate will be represented to the public and the parties.

(4) Supervision of affiliates shall involve regular, direct, face-to-face supervision.

(a) Depending on the affiliate's skill and experience levels, the qualified supervisor's supervision shall include direct observation of the affiliate by:

(i) Sitting in sessions;

(ii) Audio tape recording;

(iii) Videotaping, etc.

(b) In some cases, such as geographic location or disability, more flexible supervision arrangements may be allowed. The qualified supervisor must submit requests for more flexible supervision arrangements to the department for approval.

(5) The qualified supervisor must assure that the affiliate is prepared to conduct professional work, and must assure adequate supervision of the affiliate. The qualified supervisor shall meet face-to-face with the affiliate a minimum of one hour for every ten hours of supervised professional work. Supervision meetings shall regularly occur at least every other week.

(6) A qualified supervisor may not undertake a contract that exceeds the qualified supervisor's ability to comply with supervision standards.

(7) The department recognizes the needs of certain locales, particularly rural areas, and may allow a variance from the standards in subsections (3)(b) and (5) of this section. The supervisor must submit any variance request to the department for approval with the supervision contract. Variances will be granted or denied in writing within thirty days.

(8) The nature of the affiliate-qualified supervisor relationship must be communicated to the public, other professionals, and all clients served.

(9) An affiliate may represent himself or herself as an affiliate only when performing clinical work supervised by the contracted qualified supervisor.

(10) The qualified supervisor must cosign all written reports and correspondence prepared by the affiliate. The written reports and correspondence must include a statement that indicates the work has been conducted by the affiliate acting under the qualified supervisor's supervision.

(11) Both the qualified supervisor and affiliate shall maintain full documentation of the work done and supervision provided. The department may audit the qualified supervisor's and affiliate's records to assure compliance with laws and rules.

(12) All work conducted by the affiliate is the responsibility of the qualified supervisor. The qualified supervisor shall have authority to direct the practice of the affiliate.

(13) It is the qualified supervisor's responsibility to correct problems or end the supervision contract if the affiliate's work does not protect the interests of the clients and community. If the qualified supervisor ends the contract, he or she must notify the department in writing within thirty days of ending the contract. A qualified supervisor may only change or adjust a supervision contract after receiving written approval from the department.

(14) Supervision is a power relationship. The qualified supervisor must not use his or her position to take advantage of the affiliate. This subsection is not intended to prevent a provider from seeking reasonable compensation for supervisory services.

(15) A qualified supervisor must provide accurate and objective letters of reference and documentation of the affiliate's work at the affiliate's request.

(16) The qualified supervisor shall ensure that the affiliate has completed at least one thousand hours of supervised evaluation and treatment experience before the affiliate is authorized to evaluate and treat Level III sex offenders. The qualified supervisor will submit to the department documentation that the affiliate has completed a minimum of one thousand hours within thirty days of completion of the experience.