Who We Are

Learn About CRPO

The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) regulates its registrants in the interest of protecting the public.

CRPO fulfills its mandate to protect the public interest by:

 

  • maintaining a Public Register of members;
  • holding registrants accountable for their conduct by investigating and addressing all complaints;
  • providing funding for therapy and counselling in the event a client is sexually abused by an RP;
  • developing, establishing and maintaining requirements for registration and renewal;
  • developing Professional Practice Standards For Registered Psychotherapists and the Code of Ethics;
  • ensuring the ongoing competence of members through the Quality Assurance (QA) Program; and
  • taking action to prevent non-members from using restricted titles.
Mission, Vision, & Values

CRPO’s Mission, Vision, & Values

  • Mission

    To develop standards and procedures to regulate psychotherapists in the public interest, striving to ensure competent and ethical practice within a professional accountability framework.

  • Vision

    Leadership in professional self-regulation, dedicated to the principles of excellence, fairness, openness, responsiveness and respect for diversity.

  • Values

    Leadership, Excellence, Accountability, Equity, Integrity, Teamwork, Respect, Openness

Governance

CRPO is governed by a Council of both professional and public members.

  • Governance

    The Council and its committees make decisions related to registration requirements, standards of practice, continuing professional development and the professional conduct of registrants, along with developing and monitoring regulations, policies and business systems for CRPO.

  • Governance

    Council’s duties are supported by a number of statutory and non-statutory committees, as well as by CRPO staff.

Regulatory Objectives

See the 5 regulatory objectives

  • Regulatory Objectives

    Objective 1

    Serve and protect the interest of the public.

  • Regulatory Objectives

    Objective 2

    Promote confidence in professional regulation.

  • Regulatory Objectives

    Objective 3

    Regulate in a transparent, principled, proportionate, unbiased, proactive manner.

  • Regulatory Objectives

    Objective 4

    Promote equality, diversity and inclusion in the provision of psychotherapy services.

  • Regulatory Objectives

    Objective 5

    Promote access to psychotherapy services within the system.

College Performance Measurement Framework

How well are Colleges executing their mandate to protect the public?

  • College Performance Measurement Framework

    The CPMF has been developed by the Ontario Ministry of Health in close collaboration with Ontario’s health regulatory Colleges.

    Read the 2023 report here

Controlled Act of Psychotherapy

 

The Psychotherapy Act, 2007 was proclaimed on April 1, 2015 and the controlled act of psychotherapy was proclaimed into force on December 30, 2017.

 

Proclamation included authorization for members of six colleges to perform the controlled act of psychotherapy in compliance with the acts, regulations and by-laws that govern each of their professions. It also included the provision permitting members of the other colleges who are authorized to perform the controlled act of psychotherapy to use the title “psychotherapist,” in compliance with certain conditions. In addition to members of CRPO, this includes members of College of Psychologists of Ontario, Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Service Workers, College of Nurses of Ontario, College of Occupational Therapists of Ontario, and College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario.

 

The proclamation included an amendment that provides for a two-year transition period, ending December 31, 2019, so that individuals may become registered with the appropriate colleges or change their practices so that they do not perform the controlled act of psychotherapy. By the end of the two-year transition period, anyone performing the controlled act of psychotherapy must be registered with one of the six colleges whose members are eligible to do so.

Controlled Act of Psychotherapy

The controlled act of psychotherapy is one of these legally restricted acts.

  • Controlled Act of Psychotherapy

    The 14 controlled acts are inherently risky and should only be performed by a properly qualified professional to ensure client/patient safety.

    Read more here
Registered Mental Health Therapist Category

Watch this video below to understand more about the role of health regulatory colleges in Ontario.

  • Registered Mental Health Therapist Category

    In early 2013, Council decided to defer further consideration of the RMHT category until after the proclamation of the Psychotherapy Act, 2007. This decision came shortly after the transitional Council was informed by the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care that it did not agree that practitioners proposed as members in the RMHT category should be regulated by the new College.

    Watch video here

Position Statement on Access to Care 

The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) supports measures to remove barriers that are challenging equitable access for Ontarians to the care that Registered Psychotherapists (RPs) are well-positioned to provide.

 

A strong regulatory environment means that all stakeholders in the healthcare system can be confident in the quality of care provided by RPs. The College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario is committed to establishing and maintaining the standards for qualified and accountable psychotherapy services in Ontario. As the provincial regulator of Ontario’s more than 8,200 RPs, protecting the public is our primary mandate.

 

The scope of practice of RPs is the “assessment and treatment of cognitive, emotional or behavioural disturbances by psychotherapeutic means, delivered through a therapeutic relationship based primarily on verbal or non-verbal communication.”

Since 2015, CRPO has established and implemented regulatory mechanisms that provide accountability for safe, ethical and competent psychotherapy practice, including:

  • ensuring anyone applying for registration with CRPO meets rigorous educational standards before they can practise as an RP or use the protected title “Registered Psychotherapist”
  • establishing and enforcing standards and guidelines for the practice and conduct of registrants
  • upholding the quality of care by developing a robust quality assurance program to ensure registrants continually improve their skills and knowledge
  • responding to complaints and reports about the care provided by registrants

 

The public has grown to expect that RPs will be accessible partners on their care teams, whether in private practice, community health care organizations, or in hospitals. However, some challenges in the delivery system remain, impeding access to care that RPs are well-positioned to provide. By leveraging the growing number of RPs within the system broadly, the province’s mental health care services could be better optimized, resulting in improved access to appropriate continuity of care with providers and in the setting of choice.

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