Clinical Supervision in Ontario

            For decades, the practice of psychotherapy in Ontario was unregulated. This meant that anyone, no matter their background and training could open up a therapy office and start seeing clients.  It doesn’t take much to figure out why this was so problematic. Allowing anyone and everyone to call themselves therapists unfortunately paved the way for many unqualified people entering the field and offering support to clients.

            This all changed in 2015 when the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario came to be. Although it took a few years for the College to become fully operational, it is now an integral part of the Ontario landscape for psychotherapy.

What is the College?

            The main purpose of the College is to protect members of the public from nefarious actions on the part of the therapists. This can include boundary violations, sexual involvement with clients, practising out of scope as well as conflict of interest issues. Simply put, the harm that a therapist can cause to client can be life-changing and we need laws and practices that protect vulnerable populations.

            This doesn’t mean however that you should always be looking over your shoulder as a therapist, waiting to ‘get into trouble.’ The College is designed in a way to prevent these instances from happening in the first place. The best way to prevent this from happening is to have clinical supervision in Ontario.

            According to CRPO, “Registered Psychotherapist (Qualifying) Registrants shall receive clinical supervision regarding all clinical experience positions. That is, none of the clinical experience positions shall be unsupervised. Clinical supervision shall be spread evenly at an approximate ratio of 1 clinical supervision hour for every 4.5 DCC (direct client contact) hours. Registered Psychotherapist Registrants without independent practice shall receive clinical supervision regarding all clinical experience positions. That is, none of the clinical experience positions shall be unsupervised. Clinical supervision shall be spread evenly at an approximate ratio of 1 clinical supervision hour for every 10 DCC hours.” (https://www.crpo.ca/supervision/).

            This essentially means that any Registered Psychotherapist who has not met the criteria for independent practice must work with a clinical supervisor. This of course raises the question of how do you find a clinical supervisor in Ontario? Some practitioners are fortunate enough to have clinical supervision available through a senior team member at their place of employment. However, many new therapists do not have this option and must therefore seek an outside supervisor in order for them to continue practicing the controlled act of psychotherapy.

How Can We Help?

            This is of course where OntarioSupervision.ca comes into play. We offer clinical supervision on an ongoing basis to therapists who work for agencies but do not have an in house supervisor as well as those who are in the Qualifying stages and starting their own practice. As stated above, one supervision hour for every 4 – 5 hours of direct client contact is legally required for those in the Qualifying category. For those who cannot yet legally operate an independent practice, they must seek out one hour of clinical supervision in Ontario for every ten hours of direct client contact.

Who Pays for It?

            Unfortunately, unless you have a clinical supervisor on staff at your agency who is willing to supervise you, you will need to get an outside supervisor. There are however ways to save money. Many new therapists opt for group Ontario clinical supervision. This method allows the costs of supervision to be spread among several group members. However, the cost savings aren’t the only benefit. New therapists in group supervision sessions can not only learn from their supervisors but can also learn from their peers. Often, the best learning you can get in this field is from talking to people who are actively practicing it. There is no therapist in the world who has dealt with every situation and who knows the answer to every question. Group supervision in Ontario is an economical, evidence-based way of getting your supervision hours without breaking the bank.

If group supervision doesn’t work for you, you can always opt for individual supervision. Although this will be a bit more expensive, it will allow you the chance to dig deeper with your supervisor and to really hone your skills. It’s important to not look at supervision as something you ‘have to do’ but rather as something that will undoubtedly help your career and increase your confidence. As we said earlier, no therapist knows everything so it’s important that we are all consistently interacting with our colleagues and sharpening our clinical knowledge.

How to Sign Up

            If you want to start clinical supervision in Ontario, the first step is sending us an email. Simply outline your background, education and experience as well as what your specific clinical supervision requirements are. Our team will then work with you to find the best supervision model for your budget as well as your therapeutic style. Individual and group supervision in Ontario is available and sessions can begin as quickly as one week from initial contact.

            Supervision isn’t something you can avoid if you want to practice psychotherapy in Ontario. So instead of fighting against this immovable object, try to view supervision as a tool that will surely help you to become a better therapist. It can be tough to start a career in this rewarding profession, but we can assure you that all your time and effort will be worth it. Once you start hearing from your clients just how much of a change you helped them to make, you will know you made the right choice.