The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 1 59 TCU has created a community medical mobile unit to offer services to people in lower socioeconomic communities that are involved in the criminal justice system and those who are receiving mental health services. As a representative in the criminal justice community that offers therapeutic services, they can offer services to our clients. There are other collaborative services that are being offered in the community—connecting the local city hospitals and the mental health community and bridging these gaps in services. The increase of teletherapy has allowed services to go on uninterrupted during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 8. For future mental health and/or addiction counselors, what advice would you have regarding their involvement in advancement and future development of the profession? My advice for future clinicians—once you identify your passion, continue to be a forever learner. Our field is ever evolving. Working in addictions, new drugs are always on the rise. We must stay on top of things as changes are coming about. When I started in this profession in 1987 as a caseworker, the DSM-III was the clinical reference. By the time I became an addiction counselor in 1993, the DSMIII-TR was the clinical reference. Here we are in 2023, and the new clinical reference is the DSM-5-TR. Participating with local or national associations allows us to be a part of transitions within and around our profession. Create a voice in our profession that helps to support future clinicians. This concludes the eighth interview for the annual Lifetime Achievement in Counseling Series. TPC is grateful to Joshua D. Smith, PhD, NCC, LCMHC, and Neal D. Gray, PhD, LCMHC-S, for providing this interview. Joshua D. Smith is an assistant professor at the University of Mount Olive. Neal D. Gray is a professor at Lenoir-Rhyne University. Correspondence can be emailed to Joshua Smith at jsmith@umo.edu.
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