There are a number of different mental health credentials and titles, and it might be difficult to understand all the different roles and responsibilities. There are Psychiatrists, Registered Psychologists, Registered Provisional Psychologists, Psychotherapists, Clinical Social Workers, Social Workers, Mental Health Therapists, Counsellors, Marriage and Family Therapists and more recently, mental health coaches. It is difficult to know the differnece and where to go for help.

When looking for help, it is important that you see the right professional specific to your concers, otherwise you may leave disappointed. For example, we often hear of clients seeking an appointment with a psychiatrist expecting a talk therapy session. That person will leave feeling unfulfilled, becuase “they hardley spent any time with me and only wanted to presribe me medication”. In this article, we will discuss the different types of mental health professionals, their training and the various types of mental health professionals that you might encounter. Ideally, a professional will take some time with you prior to initiating services to ensure that they are the best fit for what you need and will refer you to another professional if their services are not a good fit.

This breif video “Mental Health Professionals” from the Psychologist’s Association of Alberta may be helpful to understand the differences and similarities between psychologists, psychiatrists and counsellors. There will be more information provided about other professional designations and their roles in this article.

Psychiatrists

Psychiatrist have trained first as a medical doctor and then have engaged in further specialization to treat psychiatric problems. Typically they will engage in an assessment process (which might look very similar to what some psychologists do), however a psychiatrist will typically be assessing for diagnostic puproses, which in turn will guide medication choices. Psychiatrist do not generally engage in personal counselling or therapy. The involvement of a psychiatrist is often recommended if your mental health difficulties have a physiological component (like concussion for example); if complex combinations of psychotroptic medications are required; or if the individual suffers from complex psychological difficulties that may require hospitalization.

It is not uncommon, and it is recommended that a patient would be accessing the services of a psychiatrist and a psychologist at the same time. The psychiatrist is responsible for the medication management and any changes. Meanwhile, the psychologist might assist with medication monitoring, but is responsible for the non-medication psychological interventions like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), ongoing assessment and the teaching of coping skills.

Family Physcians

Family Physcians are often a key part of the mental health team. Family Physcians are trained as a medical doctor like a psychiatrist, but have not specialized in psychiatric problems. Having said that, many family physcians have taken extra training and are familiar with common psycho-tropic interventions for common mental health disorders. They will often initiate medication for a variety of mental health problems. They may refer to a psychiatrist if medication management or diagnoses becomes complex. Like psychiatrists, their main role is to assess and prescribe medication, and rule out any physiological issues causing mental health problems (metabolic imblances can be a common culprit).

It is very common for a psychologist and a family physcian to work together to treat mental health difficulties. If a client shows up to a psychologist first, the psychologist might send the client to their family physcian to get a physical done to rule out any physiological issues prior to providing psychological interventions. Becuase psychologists in Canada don’t prescribe medication, a family physcian would likely become involved to prescirbe appropriate medication. Ideally, when a physcian prescribes psycho-tropic medication such as an anti-depressant or anti-anxiety they might also refer the individual to a psychologist to engage in counselling.

Registered Psychologists (R. Psych.)

Registered Psychologists typically are educuated with Doctorate (Ph.D, Psy.D), or Masters (M.Ed, M.Sc., MA.). In order to use the term psychologist, an individual must be registered with their their Provincial Governing Body. In Alberta, that is the College of Alberta Psychologists. To acquire this registration they have proven that they have taken the appropriate psychology courses in their their graduate training, they have passed a knowledge test, an ethical test and have participated in 1800 hours of supervised practise. Someone who is a “Registered Provisional Psychologist” means that they are going through the registration process. They have had their education requirements approved, but still have some steps to complete before they are fully registered.

Psychologists have training in human behaviour, development, psychological health and often neurobiology. Psychologists evaluate and treat people who have mental health problems, such as depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorders, bipolar disorder and personality disorders. Psychologists also provide a variety of counselling and psychological interventions. In Canada, psychologists do not prescribe medicine.

Acquiring this designation is the most rigorous of all Counselling Professionals, so as a consumer, you rest assured that a registered psychologist has appropriate training. However, it is still important that you consider if they are trained in the area that you need help in and that they are a good fit with you personally.

Registered Clinical Social Workers (R.C.S.W.)

Registered Clinical Social workers have a masters degree in Social Work and specific training to provide psycho-social interventions such as therapeutic interventions. Social workers who have demonstrated their competance in psycho-social interventions to the College of Alberta Social Workers can provide mental health intervention. They must prove their education, training and supervised practice to earn the Registered Clinical Social Worker designation. If you are seeking clinical counselling from a social worker, it would be important to look for the Registered Clinical Social Work designation.

Psychotherapists, Mental Health Counsellors

Psychotherapists and Mental Health Counsellors ought to have a masters degree (M.A., M.Sc., M.Ed) and be certified with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) as Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC). It is importnat to note that a therapist can be a member of CCPA but not certified. Certification means that they are qualified to provide counselling services in Canada. It also means that they have met expectations with regard to educational requirements, continuing education, professional standards and ethics.

If a masters level counsellor is in a province where a doctoral degree is required to become a registered psychologist, they may choose this designation. In Alberta, a counsellor with a masters degree who chooses not to participate in the rigourous expectations of becoming a registered psychologist may certify in this way.

Marriage and Family Therapists (MFTA)

Many years ago a masters program in marriage and family therapy was availble in Alberta. Unfortunately, Alberta no longer regulates the profession of marriage and family therapy. Many of the therapists trained in this modality have become certified with the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association as Canadian Certified Counsellor (CCC). These therapists are uniquely trained to provide family therapy and couples counselling. It is worthwhile to inquire about their training and their certifcation to ensure they are associated with a regulatory body.

Registered Nurses and Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPN, RN)

Registered Psychiatric nurses, much like social workers often work as part of a clinical team. They are nurses who are specifically trained in mental health.  RPNs are often found in psychiatric hospitals where they are responsible for distributing medication and monitoring patient behavior. With their specific education and experience, RPNs often conduct intake interviews and provide their observations to a psychiatrist for review.

In Alberta, Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPN) can have a variety of educational background from a diploma to a masters degree. They do have a regulatory body College of Registered Psychiatric Nurses. With appropriate training and education RPNs can be involved in providing supportive counselling and are particularly skilled in medication monitoring for clients.

Registered Social Workers (RSW)

When Social workers are engaged in mental health teams, they often work to improve the social functioning of patients. By this we mean that they are responsible for interviewing you to see where you might be struggling in society. They would then provide referrals to agencies that can support you. For examle if you were to disclose that you struggle with addictions, they will connect you to AA or to rehabilitation programs. If you are struggling with finances maybe they would help you acccess employment supports by filling out employement forms or refering you to employment services. If you are experiencing legal trouble they might assist you through the court system or refer you to legal aide. If you are feeling suicidal, they might help connect you to a psychiatrist and psychologist to initiate treatment and provide appropraite phone numbers to applicable resources. Social Workers often know the local community resources extremely well. They are a wealth of information when you are looking for agencies that may be able to help.

In Alberta, Registered Social Workers can have a variety of education levels from a Diploma to a Master’s Degree. It is important to inquire about education, trainng and experience. There are relatively new education programs in Alberta that provide training in Indigenous Social Work. They will have unique cultural knowledge and unique perspectives aligned with Indigenous Peoples and applicable resources.

Counsellor, Therapist, Coach

When you encounter someone using the title of Counsellor, Counselor, Mental Health Therapist, or Mental Health Coach, it will be important to inquire about their education, experience, and training. The titles Social Worker, Psychologist, Nurse and Physcian are protected titles, meaning you must have certain training to use them. Because the titles “psychotherapist”, “counsellor”, “coach” and “therapist” are not protected titles, anyone can use them, educated or not. Some well trained, well educated and skillful therapists may use these titles, but they would likely also be registered or certified with a professional body. If the person uses these titles, but has no professional body (like the College of Alberta Psychologists, Alberta College of Social Workers or others), you have no recourse if their interventions cause harm and there is no body ensuring appropraite training or ethical guidelines for the provider. Caution is warranted.

In Conclusion

There are a variety of mental health providers. Hopefully this has helped you to understand where they overlap and the differences in their approach.

With this understanding you are now be ready to find the best mental health professional for your needs. Below are some great options to start looking for a psychologist or counsellor in your area.

1. The Psychologist’s Associatioon of Alberta has a handy referral service. Where you enter your town and the type of struggles you are encountering. It will then sort through the registered psychologists and provide you contact information.
2. Psychology Today is another search tool that includes a variety of mental health professionals. This is a nice option as you can read about several professionals in one place and allows you to search by location.
3. Attend your family doctor to discuss your mental health concerns. It is good for them to be aware of your symptoms even if you don’t want medication. They may be aware of local professionals. Also doctors often have Psychologists or Social Workers providing services in their Primary Care Network. Thus the support can sometimes be offered within the same clinic.
4. Ask your friends and family members for referrals.
5. Contact a psychologist local to you. Many offer a free 15 minute consultation service. They can direct you to the right service. You can book a free consultation with McKinney Psychology

We ALWYAS encourage people to meet a few different counsellors and interview them. It is vital that you ensure you are comfortable with whatever professional you choose. The relationship between the mental helth professional and client is extremely important to any future treatment intervention.

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Naomi McKinney, Registered Psychologist

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