R523-7-3. Designated Examiners Certification

  (1) A "Designated Examiner" is a licensed physician or other licensed mental health professional designated by the Division as specially qualified by training or experience in the diagnosis of mental or related illness, as defined in Subsection 62A-15-602(3).

  (a) The Division shall certify that a designated examiner is qualified by training and experience in the diagnosis of mental or related illness. Certification will require at least five years continual experience in the treatment of mental or related illness in addition to successful completion of training provided by the Division.

  (b) Application for certification will be achieved by the applicant making a written request to the Division for their consideration. Upon receipt of a written application, the Director will initiate a review and examination of the applicant's qualifications.

  (c) The applicant must meet the following minimum standards in order to be certified.

  (i) The applicant must be a licensed mental health professional.

  (ii) The applicant must be a resident of the State of Utah.

  (iii) The applicant must demonstrate a complete and thorough understanding of abnormal psychology and abnormal behavior, to be determined by training, experience and written examination.

  (iv) The applicant must demonstrate a fundamental and working knowledge of the mental health law. In particular, the applicant must demonstrate a thorough understanding of the conditions which must be met to warrant involuntary commitment, to be determined by training, experience and written examination.

  (v) The applicant must be able to discriminate between abnormal behavior due to mental illness which poses a substantial likelihood of serious harm to self or others from those forms of abnormal behavior which do not represent such a threat. Such knowledge will be determined by experience, training and written examination.

  (vi) The applicant must be able to demonstrate a general knowledge of the court process and the conduct of commitment hearings. The applicant must demonstrate an ability to provide the court with a thorough and complete oral and written evaluation that addresses the standards and questions set forth in the law, to be determined by experience, training and written and oral examination.

  (vii) The applicant shall attend the training for the certification of designated examiners that is provided by the Division and pass the exam at the completion of the training with a minimum of 70% correct.

  (d) The Division Director or designee will determine if experience and qualifications are satisfactory to meet the required standards. The Division Director or designee will also determine if there are any training requirements that may be waived due to prior experience and training to grant an exception of any of the above requirements.

  (e) Upon satisfactory completion of the required experience and training, the Division Director or designee will certify the qualifications of the applicant, make record of such certification and issue a certificate to the applicant reflecting his status as a designated examiner and authorize the use of privileges and responsibilities as prescribed by law.