CRPO receives its authority from legislation that outlines the specific responsibilities of a regulatory body. The Psychotherapy Act and Regulated Health Professions Act require the College to ensure that the people of Ontario have access to qualified, skilled and competent regulated health professionals. It does this by:

• setting entry to practice requirements to become a registered professional

• establishing and enforcing practice standards, guidelines, and codes of ethics for safe, effective care

• running quality assurance programs to ensure registrants stay up to date in their knowledge and skills

• receiving, investigating and screening reports and addressing instances where care or conduct do not meet the standards of practice

• protecting the use of restricted professional titles

• providing information to the public about registrants through the public register

The legislation does not allow CRPO to control the number of qualified registrants entering practice in the province.  If CRPO or any regulatory health college in Ontario tried to control the number of new clinicians entering the field, it would be acting outside its legislated mandate, face significant government intervention, and could be subject to legal challenges.  The primary duty of these colleges, as established by the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 (RHPA), is to protect the public interest, not manage the healthcare labour market.

The CRPO Supervision Guide and Module can be found here.

CRPO has several resources that address this topic:

• Cross Border Therapy Tool 

• Out of Province: I practise in Ontario but have a client outside of Ontario who wants to work with me 
• Cross Border Electronic Practice Webinar – September 10, 2024

PHIPA requires that personal health information (PHI) only be collected, used, and disclosed with consent, unless a legal exception applies. PHI must be stored in a reasonably secure manner. Registrants must obtain appropriate client consent and assure themselves that systems are secure before entering PHI onto an AI platform.

CRPO has recently developed guidelines about use of AI by RPs.

For lower-risk standards violations, such as use of testimonials, registrants may wish to contact colleagues directly to discuss their advertising prior to involving the College.

The College is currently undertaking a thorough review of the Entry to Practice Competency Profile, which sets requirements and expectations for psychotherapists entering the profession. The review will consider evolving public expectations and leverage internal data, external research, consultations, and the knowledge and experience of the Council and the Registration Committee.

CRPO does not require practitioners who reside in another jurisdiction to become registered in order to work with a client in Ontario providing:

• the therapist does not intend to advertise or otherwise promote their services in Ontario; and

• Ontario-based clients do not form a substantial proportion of the therapist’s workload

If any of these factors were to change, CRPO would revisit the facts and consider whether the therapist should apply for registration, even on a temporary basis.

For further information on this, please consult our Practice Matters article.

Residents of Ontario are encouraged to seek services from healthcare professionals who are a) registered with a regulatory body; and b) accountable to a regulatory body for the quality of care they provide and for their professional conduct. If a resident of Ontario has concerns about the conduct of an unregulated healthcare provider, or a provider who is regulated in another jurisdiction, CRPO would either refer the resident to the relevant regulatory body or investigate as needed, though CRPO’s ability to act may be limited.

The College has drafted guidance on psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy, which we intend to distribute following approval from Council. Registrants will be notified of the guidance through an upcoming Communique.

Anyone using the title “psychotherapist” (or a derivative), holding themselves out as being qualified to practice as a psychotherapist or performing the controlled act of psychotherapy must be registered with  CRPO or one of the other five colleges whose members are authorized to do so. This includes individuals who are energy healers.

Whether an individual is practicing the controlled act of psychotherapy can be determined by reviewing section 4 of the Psychotherapy Act, 2007. CRPO has also developed an online tool for practitioners to help individuals determine if they are practicing the controlled act and need to be registered or restrict their practice.

CRPO is unable to comment on proposed changes to entry requirements for the College of Psychologists and Behavioural Analysts of Ontario. Questions regarding eligibility should be made directly to that College.

This question may be referring to:

• The fees supervisees may be required to pay to receive clinical supervision;

• The fees students may receive for providing therapy to clients as part of training; or

• The fees new registrants pay in connection with obtaining their registration to practice.

The first two items are addressed on page 27 of CRPO’s Clinical Supervision Guide. Regarding the last item, registering with a regulated profession has associated costs. CRPO fees are posted on the website.

Currently, the College is not considering any scalable payment options.

CRPO Council, in consultation with the profession, decided that a newly trained psychotherapist cannot clinically supervise another therapist. At least five years of experience practicing psychotherapy since graduation are required.

Council’s position is that this minimum experience allows new practitioners to solidify their own clinical knowledge, skills and judgement and allows time to obtain the unique skill set required to provide safe and effective clinical supervision.

For a full list of requirements before serving as a clinical supervisor, see the Supervision Requirements web page.

The requirement to practise with clinical supervision is business-model neutral. A registrant, including an RP (Qualifying), can operate a solo private practice and contract with a clinical supervisor to oversee the supervisee’s client care and professional development.

There may be risk in this situation, e.g., a registrant may be tempted to share limited information with their clinical supervisor given the autonomy they have over their own business. A strong, clear supervisory relationship and supervision agreement is essential in ensuring the supervisee receives the support they need. CRPO is continually considering whether additional resources or oversight are required for newer practitioners operating a private practice.

See this resource also.

All registrants must participate in CRPO’s Quality Assurance Program, which include professional development (PD) and peer assessment activities.

The PD component includes completing a self-assessment and at least 40 hours of learning activities related to the profession, on an ongoing basis, every two years.  This is referred to as the “PD cycle.”

A new registrant’s first PD cycle begins on their initial date of registration. New registrants are expected to begin participating in CRPO’s Quality Assurance Program by completing a self-assessment in their CRPO account within their first 60 days of registration.  Registrants can use the self-assessment to identify potential knowledge gaps and plan relevant learning activities.

To use the example in the question, someone who registers in September must complete a self-assessment before the end of November. Following that, they have two years to complete 40 hours of learning activities related to the profession. For specific requirements, please see PD Requirements.

Scope of practice decisions are made by the Ontario government based on the best interests of Ontarians and the competencies of each profession. Professional associations have a primary role in advocating scope of practice changes. If such a change were formally proposed, CRPO would carry out the regulatory work needed to implement it; however, CRPO is not in a position to initiate or advocate for the change.

The College has already undertaken a registrant consultation regarding psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy comprised of RPs working in the field. Registrants will be notified in the Communique when guidance is available.