As best practice in health care continues to become more defined and as national certification for health care professionals becomes increasingly recognized, more and more professional agencies and legislative bodies are requesting CBMT credentialing and Scope of Practice information for inclusion in guidelines, regulations, and legislation. The definitions given below are recommended for use when including information about CBMT programs in formal documents.

CBMT Mission

The mission of the Certification Board for Music Therapists is to define the body of knowledge that represents competent practice in the profession of music therapy; to create and administer a program to evaluate initial and continuing competence of this knowledge; to issue the credential of MT-BC to individuals that demonstrate the required level of competence; and to promote music therapy certification.

Qualifications

Any person representing himself or herself as a Board Certified Music Therapist must hold the MT-BC credential awarded by the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT), an independent, non-profit corporation accredited by the National Commission for Certifying Agencies. The Board Certified Music Therapist credential, MT-BC, is awarded by the CBMT to an individual upon: successful completion of an academic and clinical training program approved by the American Music Therapy Association and successful completion of a written objective examination demonstrating current competency in the profession of music therapy.

Recertification

Every five years through re-examination or upon the successful completion and documentation of 100 recertification credits and through the completion of the CBMT Application for Recertification. Payment of an annual certification maintenance fee is required.

Scope of Practice

The development of the CBMT Scope of Practice for Board Certified Music Therapists is particularly meaningful as the discipline of music therapy continues to grow and expand in its applications. Every five years a practice analysis is completed in cooperation with a team of experts in the field, surveyed certificants, and CBMT’s testing firm, AMP. It is from this process that the current Scope of Practice is developed which details the tasks necessary to practice competently to ensure consumer protection. The four content outline areas, essentially performance domains, encompass the certificants’ scope of practice. The CBMT Scope of Practice may be used when developing scope of practice language for regulatory and/or licensure purposes, as well as for defending one’s right to work in any employment setting. The CBMT Scope of Practice document is available on this side bar or obtain printed copies from the CBMT Office.

Public Protection Mechanism

Any person representing himself or herself as a Board Certified Music Therapist shall practice within the CBMT Scope of Practice as defined above and adhere to the CBMT Code of Professional Practice. Any complaints made by the public against the Board Certified Music Therapist should be brought to the attention of the Certification Board for Music Therapists for investigation and possible disciplinary action as defined by the CBMT Code of Professional Practice.

Entitlement

The following paragraph may be used within legislation or regulatory language following an exemption clause for the MT-BC or within any MT-BC title protection document:

It is unlawful for any person not meeting the criteria set forth by the Certification Board for Music Therapists to use or display in connection with his or her name or place of business the words Board Certified Music Therapist or the letters MT-BC or similar designations; or to represent in any way, orally, in writing, in print, electronic communication, or by sign, directly or by implication that he or she is a Board Certified Music Therapist qualified to provide music therapy services.