TeleMental Health services are expanding rapidly—but how can you ensure you're delivering them ethically, legally, and clinically at the highest standard of care? This course equips clinicians with the skills, confidence, and clarity to thrive in a virtual practice.
Whether you're just beginning or looking to enhance your telemental health services, this comprehensive certificate program offers everything you need to practice responsibly and effectively in today's digital environment.
Raymond Barrett, LMHC, LPC, is a leading expert in telemental health, known nationally for his practical and regulatory insight. As founder of the Telehealth Certification Institute, he has trained over 1,900 organizations and released more than 50 telehealth-focused courses for behavioral health professionals.
Ray’s teaching blends deep ethical knowledge with hands-on clinical experience. His approach empowers clinicians with step-by-step strategies for practicing telehealth confidently—covering clinical nuances, legal regulations, cultural considerations, and real-world implementation tips.
This course addresses the most critical elements of ethical and effective telemental health practice. Topics include federal and state law compliance, licensure and scope-of-practice boundaries, HIPAA-secure technology use, cultural competence, client screening, emergency planning, video and phone session skills, and adapting care to client needs across diverse settings.
Key Takeaways
Legal and clinical clarity: Understand how to legally practice across state lines and implement telemental health within your professional scope.
Technology with purpose: Learn how to select, secure, and use technology ethically and efficiently in therapy sessions.
Prepared and client-centered: Develop essential skills for screening, emergency planning, and adapting care to fit each client’s needs.
Why this course?
Comprehensive and current: Created by a trusted leader in telehealth education, this course reflects the latest laws, ethics codes, and clinical best practices.
Built for your success: Designed specifically to support behavioral health clinicians with actionable strategies that ease common challenges in telehealth.
Earn your certificate with confidence: With 15.5 CE hours and lifetime access to the self-study materials, this training is a flexible and enduring investment in your career.
Learning Objectives
Describe the history, research and settings of telemental health.
Explain how to determine if or when you can legally practice telemental health by reviewing and discussing state licencing laws and federal regulations.
Explain how to ensure you practice within your boundaries of competence when using digital or communication technology in your practice, by holding telemental health services to the same standard of care expected for same-location/ face-to-face services.
Describe the clinical, legal and ethical considerations when selecting technology, including HIPAA considerations, so you can apply these considerations to technology decisions you employ in your practice.
List and explain the possible benefits, drawbacks and risks of telemental health.
Demonstrate how to establish with the client an emergency management plan for each session in both a supervised and unsupervised environment and the process of responding to an emergency during a telemental health session.
Use three criteria to assess if a prospective and/or current client is a fit for telemental health services.
Demonstrate how to provide an effective video or phone session from start to finish.
Demonstrate how to prepare the client for a video or phone session and to address technological challenges.
Define cultural competence and cultural humility as it relates to ethical professional practice.
Adapt technology, assessment, and treatment services to fit specific cultural needs.
Step into your virtual practice with confidence and compassion. This course was built to support your growth, simplify your practice, and help you deliver the highest standard of care in the digital age.
Add to cart to begin learning instantly.
This discounted package includes the complete online self-study training program, featuring 15.5 hours of video instruction followed by a post-test.
Availability: From the time of registration, you have six months to access the coursework.
Who Should Attend: This course is intended for clinicians who provide behavioral health services.
Teaching Methods: This is a non-interactive, self-study course. Teaching methods for this course include recorded lectures, videos, a post-test, and a course evaluation.
How to Attend: Instructions for attending and completing a course can be found here.
Raymond Barrett is the founder and CEO of the Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC (TCI). A licensed mental health counselor (LMHC and LPC), Ray is an innovator and leader in the field of telemental health. He’s an expert telehealth trainer, a respected speaker, and a trusted consultant.
Ray’s inspiration for TCI came from his clients that started asking him to conduct their therapy sessions over the phone. Ray had discovered a knowledge gap in mental health training. He wanted to fill that void with comprehensive and practical training in telemental health - so Ray created that training for himself and fellow clinicians.
Since 2014, TCI has delivered comprehensive telehealth training and consultation to a global network of more than 40,000 healthcare organizations and professionals. TCI now offers over 180 specialized courses, a vast array of telehealth resources, and ongoing free continuing education opportunities for telehealth providers. Among the most sought-after courses offered by TCI is the Telemental Health Training Certificate (THTC Certificate) program.
Ray played a significant role in developing the initial curriculum for the Board Certified Telemental Health credential (BC-TMH) for the Center for Credentialing and Education (CCE). He reviewed every training module. He helped draft content, including questions for exams. He even wrote and developed the initial draft of one of the training modules: Telemental Health Settings and Coordination of Care.
The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) - the most respected organization for telehealth - recently overhauled its guidelines. Ray was on the writing committee that developed Best Practices in Synchronous Videoconferencing-Based Telemental Health in March 2022.
In 2019, Ray participated in a task force for developing a clinical rating process for mobile apps designed to help treat depression. The recommendations were presented to ATA.
The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) is an independent, nonprofit organization that provides accreditation services worldwide at the request of health and human service providers. As part of the International Standards Advisory Committee (ISAC), Ray helped establish CARF’s standards for virtual services.
Ray also is a frequent speaker and consultant for professional organizations. He has presented for over 20 organizations since 2015.
Disclosure Statement: The instructor(s) for this course receive compensation for their services. There are no reported conflicts of interest to disclose.
The THTC program consists of 15 hours 42 minutes of video training.
Credit Hours: This course consists of 15.5 continuing education hours of credit (7.5 of which are ethics)
Counselors:
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Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No, 6693. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Mental Health Counselors. #MHC-0048.
Marriage and Family Therapists: Many MFT licensing boards accept our courses or one of the approvals which we have from professional associations. You can check with your board to determine if your licensing board would accept this course.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0135, effective May 8, 2025.
Social Workers:
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Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, #1609, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 05/02/2024 – 05/02/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 15.5 total credits including 8 clinical and 7.5 ethics continuing education credits.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Social Workers #SW-0435.
Addiction Professionals:
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This course has been approved by Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #193104, Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is responsible for all aspects of the programming.
Psychologists:
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Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Telehealth Certification Institute LLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Psychologists #PSY-0128.
Art Therapists: Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Creative Arts Therapists #CAT-0093.
Other Professionals: This course qualifies for 930 minutes of instructional content as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Retain your certificate of completion and contact your board or organization for specific filing requirements.
This is a non-interactive, self-study course.
This course was updated on June 11, 2021.
