Board denies medical-errors continuing-education course, approves provider’s laws-and-rules course; AAMFT supervisor refresher denied

The Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling on the record denied a medical‑errors continuing‑education (CE) application and approved a separate four‑hour laws‑and‑rules CE course submitted by the same provider.

The board’s reviewer urged denial of the medical‑errors course, saying it presented ‘‘too much information for a two‑hour offering,’’ included slide decks that amounted to about 160 slides for the allotted time and cited sources that did not support the statistics presented. The reviewer also objected to dated clinical language in the course materials, saying a vignette described a ‘‘successful suicide attempt,’’ language the reviewer called inappropriate in current practice.

Dr. Desmaine Joseph, the course submitter, told the board he uses didactic lectures and real‑life scenarios to make law and patient‑safety material practical for clinicians and that he had recently updated parts of the syllabus.

Board members moved to deny the medical‑errors application as submitted; the motion was seconded by Dr. Molina and carried on a voice vote. The board explicitly directed the provider may resubmit a revised course with up‑to‑date citations, corrected clinical language and a revised syllabus showing how the volume of material will be delivered within the time allotment.

At the same meeting the board reviewed the provider’s four‑hour laws‑and‑rules CE and, after discussion that the material had been updated and made interactive, approved that course. The motion to approve was seconded by Miss Salal and passed on a voice vote.

Separately, the board reviewed a six‑hour ‘‘qualified supervisor refresher’’ submitted by the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT). Board staff and members noted rule 64B4‑6.0025 (subsection 4) requires that a supervisor‑refresher explicitly ‘‘review changes to Florida laws and rules relating to interns and supervisors’’ and include a set list of supervisory topics. The AAMFT submission lacked Florida‑specific law‑and‑rule updates and did not meet the rule’s listed content components, the board said. A motion to deny that application was seconded by Miss Salal and passed unanimously.

All actions on CE applications were taken as formal motions recorded in the meeting minutes. The board’s staff advised providers that denied courses may be resubmitted after revisions and that the board expects up‑to‑date, correctly cited resources and attention to Florida‑specific regulatory requirements when a rule so requires.

Votes at a glance

• Motion to deny continuing‑education application (medical errors, provider: Dr. Desmaine Joseph) — motion made on the floor; seconded by Dr. Molina; outcome: denied (voice vote; motion carries).

• Motion to approve continuing‑education application (4‑hour laws and rules, provider: Dr. Desmaine Joseph) — seconded by Miss Salal; outcome: approved (voice vote).

• Motion to deny qualified‑supervisor refresher (6‑hour course; provider: AAMFT) — seconded by Miss Salal; outcome: denied (unanimous).

Why it matters: The board enforces Florida rules that sometimes require Florida‑specific coverage (for example, qualified‑supervisor refresher courses). Providers seeking CE approval should document how course timing, slide volume and citations support the stated learning objectives and must include state‑specific legal content when the rule requires it.

Sources and process notes: Reporting is based on the board’s discussion and recorded motions appearing in the meeting transcript and on paper materials submitted for the agenda. Direct quotes and attributions are drawn from the meeting record.