Course Overview

As a staff member working with recipients of mental health services for Community Mental Health or one of its contractual providers, you must understand the rights people retain while receiving services and the additional rights that the law provides. The modules in this series provide you with basic information about rights that recipients have while receiving mental health services, your role to ensure that those rights are protected, and your responsibilities regarding those rights. Rights you will learn about in this course include person centered planning, freedom from abuse or neglect, family rights and civil rights in the Community Mental Health setting. You will also learn about confidentiality, consent, dignity and respect and you will become familiar with reporting complaints, the investigative process, and the consequences of violations.  We will also discuss some of the rights you have as an employee.  

In this course, you will learn important information about Recipient Rights for people receiving mental health treatment in the community through five individual modules. In each module there are some knowledge checkpoints to help you assess your learning, and at the end of each module you will complete a quiz.  When you've completed all the modules, you'll take the final course assessment and receive your completion certificate

The State Office of Recipient Rights created and approved the content of this course as appropriate recipient rights training for all employees who work in or are affiliated with a contracted agency of Michigan’s community mental health system, licensed psychiatric hospitals or who provide telepsychiatry services.

  • Duration: 3.5 hours
  • Credit Hours: MCBAP-R (3.5), MCBAP-S (0.0), Mi-CEC pending - under review, Nursing (0.0)
This module has been designed to conform to the WCAG 2.0 AA accessibility standards.

This module has been vetted & approved by the State Training Guidelines Workgroup.


Topics Covered

In the five individual Recipient Rights Training Modules, you will be provided basic information and knowledge specific to employees who work within the Community Mental Health system, and their affiliated and contracted agencies.

  1. Recipient Rights
  2. Person-Centered Planning
  3. Abuse and Neglect
  4. Confidentiality; Photos, Prints, Audio Recording; Dignity and Respect; Civil, Family, Residential and Other Rights
  5. The Rights Process and Reporting Rights Violations 

Additional Considerations

Have you ever wondered:

  • What happens when a person receiving mental health services has a service animal?
  • What rights do mental health recipients have in Person-Centered Planning?
  • Who can complain on behalf of a recipient?
  • What happens if a complaint is made?

These questions and many, many more are answered in this course!


Course Objectives

The learning objectives are found inside each lesson.


What People Are Saying

I enjoyed this module as we got to hear from providers and consumers regarding how programming differs from other supports/services. I have been working in this field for many years and this video was extremely helpful as a reminder to me.

- Tess G.