FAQ

In Canada, the professionals who most commonly treat people with mental health problems are psychologists and psychiatrists. A psychologist holds a master’s and/or doctoral degree in psychology that involves from 6 to 10 years of university study of how people think, feel and behave. A psychologist working with children is someone who has received extensive training in the area of child psychology. A practicing and licensed psychologist is trained to assess and diagnose problems in thinking, feeling and behaviour as well to help people overcome or manage these problems. A psychologist is uniquely trained to use psychological tests to help with assessment and diagnosis. Psychologists help people to overcome or manage their problems using a variety of treatments or psychotherapies.

 

Psychologists who hold doctoral degrees, can use the title doctor (‘Dr.’). Psychologists who practice and are licensed typically will have completed their graduate university training in clinical psychology, counseling psychology, clinical neuropsychology or educational/school psychology. The abbreviation R. Psych (registered psychologist) is added to their title once they have met the provincial requirements for registration as a clinical psychologist. Provincial and territorial governments give a few health professions the responsibility to license or regulate their profession. Regulation or licensure is important because it ensures that the practitioner has met a high standard of training and provides a high standard of care. If you have any concern about the behaviour of a regulated practitioner, you can contact the provincial or territorial regulatory body that licenses his or her practice ( i.e., College of Psychologists of British Columbia ). In addition to the R. Psych in their title, licensed psychologists will often give their license number.

Psychiatrists are medical doctors who go on to specialize in mental health and mental disorders and hold a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree. Psychiatrists often use medication to help their clients manage their mental disorders (e.g., some attention problems and depressions). Some psychiatrists also do psychotherapy much like psychologists and some family physicians have an interest and training in treating psychological problems. In contrast, psychologists do not prescribe medication. They use a variety of evidence-based assessment and treatment approaches as a primary means of assessing and treating mental health and psychological concerns in their clients. Sometimes a client might consult his or her family physician or psychiatrist about medication while seeing a psychologist for psychotherapy.

The length of the assessment depends somewhat on the complexity of the problem. Simple procedures like developmental screening take 1-3 hours, and gifted assessment can take as little as 4-6 hours. However, a detailed assessment for an undifferentiated problem generally involves 1-2 hours for an initial interview, 6-8 hours of direct assessment time with the child, and 1-2 hours for feedback with the family. These direct contacts are carried out over 3 separate visits (see “What to Expect” in the Services section). A large part of the psychologist’s work is done “behind the scenes” and involves reviewing past notes, school and psychology reports about the child, scoring and interpreting the results of tests and finally formulating the results of the assessment and writing a report of the findings. This behind the scenes work usually takes between 10 and 20 hours of time all of which is included the standard assessment fee.

A comprehensive psychological assessment includes consideration of the individual, social and environmental contributing factors that may help to explain a child’s strengths and areas of need. Registered psychologists are trained in the administration of standardized measures of cognition, attention, language and academic functioning but are also knowledgeable about available evidence-based treatment approaches. In addition to the assessment of a child’s functioning, a psychological assessment can also include interviews with parents, teachers and caregivers. Following the assessment, the psychologist can offer a complete understanding of a child and recommendations for treatment.

Cognitive-behavior therapy is a particular intervention approach which involves assessment and treatment of an individual’s thinking, feeling and behavior. Cognitive-behavior is an approach to therapy with scientific evidence that has been shown to be effective in the treatment of a number of childhood problems.

As young children are not always able to express their thoughts and feelings directly through words, play therapy is used as an alternate modality for expression. In play therapy, the therapist aims to develop a therapeutic relationship with the child and to follow the child’s lead in expressing their emotions and thoughts in a safe environment.