The controlled act of psychotherapy is defined as:
i) Treating,
ii) by means of psychotherapy technique,
iii) delivered through a therapeutic relationship,
iv) an individual’s serious disorder of thought, cognition, mood, emotional regulation, perception or memory that,
v) may seriously impair the individual’s judgement, insight, behaviour, communication or social functioning (RHPA 1991).
All five elements of this definition must be present in order for the controlled act to have taken place.
In order to determine if you are performing the controlled act of psychotherapy, service providers must assess the seriousness of an individual’s disorder and impairment. This includes an individual’s disorder or impairment of thought, cognition, mood, emotional regulation, perception or memory that may seriously impair the client’s judgement, insight, behaviour, communication or social functioning. Assessment is a process that is ongoing and issues that may require the controlled act are not always immediately identifiable. In making this assessment, service providers should consider the following:
- The client’s subjective assessment of the level of seriousness of their condition.
- The clinician’s subjective assessment of the level of seriousness of the client’s condition.
- The assessment by another care provider of the level of seriousness of the client’s condition.
Are you trained in, competent with and using psychotherapy modalities from one or more of the five categories of prescribed therapies described in regulation or policy?
- Cognitive and behavioural therapies
- Experiential and humanistic therapies
- Psychodynamic therapies
- Somatic therapies
- Systemic and collaborative therapies
For more examples of each category, see the Controlled Act of Psychotherapy page linked in Related Resources at the bottom of the page.
Answer: Yes/No
If you answered “yes” to questions 2, 3 and 4, you are most likely working within the scope of practice of psychotherapy and should consider whether you meet the requirements for registration with CRPO or one of the other five colleges whose members are authorized to provide the controlled act of psychotherapy. A full description of CRPO’s entry-to-practice requirements and the registration application process are available in the Related Resources below.