Professional Disclosure Statement for Counselors Who Are Licensed by the State of Maine
Mick Bransky, MA, Ed.D.
42 Jesse Ladd Rd, PO Box 95, Vienna, Maine 04360
Phone: (207) 293-2316
Clinical Licensure: Marriage & Family Counseling (MF 287)
Original License: 08/94, Expiration: 09/08
Certification: The Boston Family Institute in Maine
Member: The American Association of Marriage & Family Therapists
Areas of Competence
My professional preparation and experience is for work with individuals (children and adults), couples, families, and groups. I have worked in the counseling Center at the University of Maine at Farmington, been certified in Integrative Family Systems Therapy by the Boston Family Institute in Maine and, since 1994, been in private practice as a Licensed Marriage and Family Counselor.
The term Integrative above means bringing together a wide range of skills and experiences in a way that meets the needs of clients. My current skills and interests in counseling build upon more than forty years of professional and academic experience. I have a Masters degree in clinical psychology and a doctorate in teacher development. I completed two postdoctoral studies in the education and development of helping professionals. The most recent of these was concerned with the application of the Enneagram of Personality to counseling. I have also been actively involved in hundreds of professional training experiences concerned with the linked issues of the origin of human disquiet and the evolution of human potential. Coupled with more than thirty years of University teaching, and twelve years of marriage and family counseling, and with consulting in business, spiritual and education settings, my academic and other professional experiences provide a deep, broad, flexible, and enduring base of life wisdom upon which to found my counseling practice.
Course of Treatment
In counseling as in life, it is a prime goal to find a path that suits and is beneficial to you. Your life experience (and mine) will inform our work together. Our first meeting is particularly important to this process, for it is here that we set the nature of our working relationship. In it, we get to know each other, do counseling, and make plans. You will read this disclosure statement so you can find out about and ask me questions about my professional approach. I will ask you about why you sought me out and gather information about your health history, family of origin, what's happening currently in your personal and/or work life, and what you would like to get out of our time together. I will also describe some of the specific things we might do together. I have found the Enneagram of Personality, the Myers Briggs Type Indicator, and the Genogram for charting family systems to be useful tools for understanding oneself and others. They have been very valuable in my practice. We will discuss them and decide together.
As a closing activity for our first meeting, we will summarize what we did and learned and then we will create a plan for our next meeting. Part of co-creating our goals and plans is to set some expectations for assessing our work together. I usually suggest an initial time frame of three to eight sessions, an evaluation of each session and a redesign of the plan as needed. Future sessions will generally expand on what we have done already. On occasion, as part of our work, we might also decide together to go for a walk, stretch, study a relevant theory, discuss a life experience depicted in a movie, book or TV program, or watch a video that would be of practical use in our counseling process. To increase the effectiveness of our sessions there may also be homework for you to do. We might also decide that, while in the beginning we will meet more frequently, as we progress we might meet every other week or once a month when it seems appropriate.
In sum, the general approach to counseling is to create a friendly, professional atmosphere which is designed to further such qualities, as the following: a deeper insight into human interactions; a greater personal empowerment; increased self awareness, acceptance, and care; a more balanced and effective personal and interpersonal advocacy; renewed sense of hope and purpose at work, school and home. This begins in our first interview and continues throughout our work together.
Because it distracts from the focus on therapy, socializing between counselors and clients falls outside the professional standards of the Board of Counseling Licensure in Maine and outside the laws that guide counseling in Maine.
Confidentiality and Privileged Communication
It is a general rule of professional ethics that all communication occurs in confidence. Thus, clients have the right to expect complete confidentiality EXCEPT as required by law: (1) threat of serious harm to self or others, (2) reasonable suspicion of child abuse, or abuse of elder or any incapacitated person, (3) court order, (4) voluntary release signed by client or guardian, (5) defense against a legal action or formal compliant which the client makes before a court or regulatory board and, as required by Board rules, during supervisory consultations.
Counselor Supervision
To insure the quality of this counseling practice, the services of a counseling supervisor are utilized. This is both proper professional protocol and a legal requirement of the State of Maine. When applicable, a statement will be made available to you indicating that your case may be discussed with a supervisor. The cost of this supervision is to this practice and not to you. However, while the focus of supervision is on my work more than yours, the benefit is to us both.
Payment For Counseling
In Maine, by law, counseling is fee for service only (e.g., no gifts or time swapping is allowed). For clients who are covered by a payment plan (e.g.; an insurance policy, an employee assistance plan – EAP) the general procedure expected by most insurers, but not all, is for the client to pay a co-pay (e.g. $15.00) at the time of service and for the plan to pay the remainder to the counselor after receiving an invoice. Check with your plan representative about the plans expectation about payment.
For clients who are not following an insurance plan, fees are due at the time of service. Fees are on a sliding scale (e.g. $40.00 to $80.00 per hour). Unless otherwise decided the usual cost is $70.00 per hour.
State Regulation
The practice of counseling is regulated by:
Department of Professional and Financial Regulation
Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure
32 State House Station, Augusta, ME 04333
Phone: (207) 624-8603