30 July 2014

posted in:

What You Should Know About The CRPO

In case you haven’t heard (and I’m not surprised if you haven’t, so don’t feel bad) there is a new College that has been formed to represent and govern over (i.e. regulate) psychotherapy in Ontario.

The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (or CRPO) is, in brief, necessary. It’s necessary because currently anyone can put a sign on their office saying Psychotherapist and there would be no need to qualify that professional attribution. Under the new College (whose proclamation date is currently set for Autumn 2014) you would need to be registered with the College in order to practice as a psychotherapist. Not only will the College provide some much needed representation for psychotherapy (representation which Psychologists and Psychiatrists currently enjoy), but also some much needed infrastructure for the protection of those working with therapists who may have qualifying complaints.

Don’t get me wrong, no one wants to hear about therapists not doing their job properly. But there are examples of incompetence and misconduct in every profession – and that is what psychotherapy is: a profession. Under the College we are legally obligated to protect the interests of our clients in the same way that lawyers and doctors are.

As well as ensuring protection for the public and an umbrella for my profession, it is my hope that CRPO will also be able to make it easier for insurance companies to recognize (and eventually provide more coverage for) psychotherapy, making it easier for those clients with employee health benefits to reap the rewards.

Got any questions about CRPO? Go ahead and ask me. I’m in the process of registering so I’m brushed-up on the topic! You can also check out their website (currently in Transitional form) here.