News

The Tax Free Therapy Coalition, of which the OSRP is a founding and active member, continues to lobby high-level decision makers re: the unfair tax on Psychotherapy/Counselling Therapy while The House of Commons is in summer recess. (Click here for their schedule.)

HST updates are always available on the OSRP Website’s Advocacy Corner.

There are two HST Bills which, come fall, will continue to move through this parliament.

1. NP MP Lindsay Mathyssen's Private Members' Bill C-218, which received first reading December 2021, and which was referred to in the petition she sponsored, signed by 14,200+ supporters and tabled March 6, 2023,
   
   and
   
   
2. PC MP Stephen Ellis' Private Members' Bill C-323, which received first reading April 23, 2023. CLICK HERE for video/transcript of an incredible debate about this issue on the floor of the House of Commons.

The NDP have pledged their support to the PC Bill, which received a better number in the "order of precedence" than theirs.

The PC Bill is scheduled for a second reading/debate in fall 2023.

Meanwhile, we are keeping the pressure on with ongoing activism including letter writing, the two Bills, and the petition, all of which have been effective in raising awareness and opening doors for us to make our case.

Letter-writing tools and social media shareables can be found at TaxFreeTherapy.ca

The OSRP is growing and developing as an organization representing a diverse group of RPs across Ontario. With this top of mind, we intend to increase Black, Indigenous, Racialized, and LGBTQ2S+ awareness and engagement at the OSRP. To do so, we need your voices. Please let us know what we can do to make joining our Board a good fit for you.

NEW: Board Members will be eligible to take Sheridan College’s Building Literacy in Equitable Practices Micro-Credential training program, developed for OSRP. Details to follow!

If you are Board-Curious and interested in learning more about becoming part of the OSRP Board, you are invited to an Open House with Kimberly Cato and Dan Sileshi, Co-Chairs of the Nomination Committee.

Click HERE to register!

Scheduled Zoom Meeting date & time:
DATE: Friday, August 25
TIME: 1-2 p.m. EDT

Please let us know if you can make it and if you have any specific questions we can prepare to answer when we meet. May your week be truly spectacular.

If this date and time don’t work for you, fear not –– we will host another Open House next month!

Feel free to contact Kimberly Cato and Dan Sileshi at: nomination@psychotherapyontario.org

It can be uncomfortable for psychotherapists to talk about money. Some of us feel shame about how much we charge; many of us feel shame about how little we charge. For many, this is a calling, and how can you put a dollar value on a calling?

At the same time, it’s important for our profession that we gather data (anonymously) to discover how much we are charging for our services. To be clear: this is not about SETTING rates or even RECOMMENDING rates. This will help the PRPA (of which the OSRP is a dues-paying member, and which is lobbying the national association of insurance companies) to generate information that will help benefit plans better budget for MORE psychotherapy coverage for our clients. It will also give us data about how charging and remitting HST can depress our take-home fees.

So far, approximately 950 therapists have filled out the survey. Thank you!

However, we need at least 1,000 for the data to be significant. To encourage more therapists to fill out the survey, which takes about 10 minutes, the deadline has been extended to the end of this month.

Please feel free to share with colleagues. We believe this will be hugely beneficial to our advocacy efforts, and our profession, from coast to coast to coast.

Your voice matters! 

PREAMBLE: The intent of the RP Rate Survey is to take a benchmark, at this point in time, of what RPs (RP-Qs) are charging clients.

The data will inform us as to the lay of the land regarding what rates are being charged. While different stakeholders are interested in this information (insurance industry, RPs, CRPO), PRPA and OSRP members will be consulted before any data is shared externally. There is no intent to set a minimum, maximum or standard rate.

All answers are anonymous.

The link to the survey is https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/823HVGT

Please feel free to share the survey with other therapists in Canada. The more data, the better. 

If you have any questions about the survey, don’t hesitate to email advocacy@psychotherapyontario.org

With 147 already registered in the PS: Protect Seminar series, organizers headed into the third event with great expectations, which were exceeded by Lawrence Murphy’s informative and energizing Zoom presentation on July 7th. To quote Murphy: “This is not simply a modality. This is a place. It’s a space…and each online space has its own culture. If you don’t know the culture of this place, if it doesn’t feel authentic or natural to you,” Murphy advises caution and professional restraint.

Even those of us who thought we understood all regulations and best practices for ethical, safe and effective online therapy learned how to enhance our work. This is absolutely a must-see, including the excellent questions brought forward by our astute and curious members.

“I was blown away, and I really hope many more OSRP members will sign up and watch this particular video,” said Alethia Cadore, RP and Chair of the Protect SubCommittee. “I don’t want anyone to miss out on important tips for your practice, especially as many of us navigate the possibility of returning to (some) in-person work while managing online reputations, communications and self-care.”

A few of the topics covered in the seminar, co-presented by Jane, the therapy app:}

• Virtual Safety Plan
• Navigating Dual Relationships (Clients on Peloton, Multi-Player Game, VR Space, etc.)
• Dis-Inhibition in Online Spaces
• Privacy Issues with Various Platforms
• Safety Considerations re: Texting — even re: Scheduling Changes
• The Hand Signal That Your Client Could Learn to Make When in Danger: Described Here
• The 20-20-20 Rule to Protect Your Eyes
• Comments Sections: Hidden Dangers
• Creating Safe Boundaries Around Online Work (e.g., not answering client emails in your PJs)
• Having a Clear Start and End to Your Day

It’s not too late to register HERE and watch all three seminars, including CYBER THERAPY: PROTECTING OUR PROFESSIONAL IMAGE, ENSURING BOUNDARIES AND CONFIDENTIALITY, on your timetable.

To quote Lawrence Murphy: “[With remote therapy,] the pain enters our sanctuary…I want you to model self-care for your clients.”

To attend/receive materials for all five PS: protect yourself Protect Seminars, if you would appreciate financial support and identify as BIPOC, please email edi@psychotherapyontario.org

The OSRP is growing and developing as an organization representing a diverse group of 1,300+ RPs across Ontario. With this top of mind, we intend to increase Black, Indigenous, Racialized, and LGBTQ2S+ awareness and engagement at the OSRP. To do so, we need your voices. Please let us know what we can do to make joining our Board a good fit for you.

If you are Board-Curious and interested in learning more about becoming part of the OSRP Board, you are invited to an Open House this Friday with Kimberly Cato and Dan Sileshi, Co-Chairs of the Nomination Committee.

Click HERE to register!

Scheduled Zoom Meeting date & time:
DATE: Friday July 7, 2023
TIME: 1-2 p.m. EDT

Please let us know if you can make it and if you have any specific questions we can prepare to answer when we meet. May your week be truly spectacular.

If this date and time don’t work for you, fear not –– we will host another Open House next month!

Feel free to contact Kimberly Cato and Dan Sileshi at: nomination@psychotherapyontario.org

Lawrence Murphy, MA, Counselling Psychology, and Instructor, Department of Psychology, Wilfrid Laurier University. Lawrence Murphy is the founder of Worldwide Therapy Online, the world’s first online clinical practice, established in 1994.

 

Starting to transition back to in-person therapy? Continuing online but wondering about the impacts on you and your practice? Have you noticed yourself inviting some clients to in person and not others? What are the ethics of this?

What kind of social media messages should you be posting publicly? How do you interpret or document if a client adds a  or a  to you  to your text or post? What if you find out the other player in a multiplayer game is your client? What happens when your client Googles you and wants to talk about your past? This seminar Zooms in on the difficult ethical and therapeutic questions we all face in this challenging time of continuous online presence.

CYBER THERAPY: PROTECTING OUR PROFESSIONAL IMAGE, ENSURING BOUNDARIES AND CONFIDENTIALITY on July 6 from 5-7 p.m. brings you an incredibly engaging expert on these topics, Lawrence Murphy.

Lawrence brings an incredible wealth of knowledge and a great sense of humour to everything he does. Bring your anxieties, concerns, hopes and clinical questions because we are planning for a lot of Q&A. Think of Lawrence as your “cyber-supervisor” for the day, and join us in community as we enhance our practice with someone who has been there, has done the research and hard thinking about these new issues that most of us were never trained to handle. Register HERE.

THANK YOU to the 144 registered members — your support makes it possible to continue offering these programs.

To attend/receive materials for all five PS: protect yourself Protect Seminars, if you would appreciate financial support and identify as BIPOC, please email edi@psychotherapyontario.org

 L to R: Alethia Cadore, RP, OSRP Board Member and Chair, Protect SubCommittee; Kusum Dole, RP, Protect SubCommittee Member; Dr. Chase Everett McMurren; Shanique Victoria Edwards, RP(Q); MDiv; Rachel Fulford, Board Member, Protect SubCommittee Member; Dr. Oren Gozlan

Caversham Booksellers table on-site. L to R: Joe Adelaars, Co-Owner, Caversham Booksellers; Dr. Oren Gozlan, Shanique Victoria Edwards RP(Q).

– by Christina Forde, RP (Qualifying), Member, Connect Committee

“What we’re uncomfortable with affects how comfortable others are to talk with us about certain topics,” stated Dr. Chase McMurren during the June 15 PS Protect Yourself hybrid Seminar: “Cultural Competency: What is It? An Introduction.” This statement has challenged me to consider how I can make therapy a safer space for the unique cultural experience of each of my clients. Dr. McMurren explained that he acknowledges the impact of power dynamics in therapy by “respecting all the things people are afraid to tell me or think that I can’t handle.”

As therapists, I believe that there is room for us to become better at viewing “clients as the experts to address our own biases,” as stated by Shanique Victoria Edwards, RP(Q).

Another statement she made that stood out to me is when she highlighted that race and culture are core aspects of humans and that “we are asking them to leave a part of themselves outside if we don’t acknowledge it.”

While reflecting on the fear of appearing uncomfortable about discussing culture, OSRP member Susie Costello asked the presenters: “Can you give some specific examples of what I might say to break the ice around cultural issues”? The presenters considered how to make the process more comfortable by “melting the ice instead of breaking it,” as per Dr. McMurren, and Dr. Gozlan responded with this great question: “Why does it feel like ice in the first place?” It resonated with me when he suggested that we ask about a person’s experience and “listen to their inner world and how they describe it.” 

“Within each culture is many cultures and each person experiences it in a particular way,” as said by Dr. Gozlan during discussion about how we can better understand a person’s lived experience of culture. He further emphasized his point by saying: “I cannot stand in someone else’s shoes. I have my own shoes. It is still my own experience of their shoes.. This statement really helped me reflect on the beautiful uniqueness of every person I meet. The presenters appeared to all agree that there is always so much to learn about each of our clients. Edwards explained her perspective that we often rely on what we know, and I believe she made a significant point by saying that our professional training leads to the “fallacy that we’re never unprepared.” The solution, according to Edwards, is to be “consistently curious.” 

The two-hour seminar video is available for purchase HERE for OSRP members only. The PS series is sponsored by Jane, who designed and printed posters and sent a representative to meet with members. Cross-promotion provided by Caversham Booksellers who also shared a curated booklist for all registrants. McFarlan Rowlands supports the OSRP’s BIPOC Bursary and Scholarship Program, to which you can contribute by clicking HERE.

It’s time for our 1,300+ wonderful members to renew as we embark on the new OSRP year starting July 1st.  Members know that the OSRP is the only Ontario association dedicated exclusively to RPs, keeping focus on our unique needs, abilities and goals.

Very well done for those who have already renewed your membership - 5 Gold Stars To You!!!

For those who haven't renewed yet, there’s only a few days before Friday’s deadline.

CLICK HERE TO BEAT THE DEADLINE & RENEW NOW.

As our association grows in numbers, so does our capacity to do more for RPs in communities across Ontario. Join us!

Questions? Contact Society Manager Evonne Brant at mail@psychotherapyontario.org or call 416-923-4050.

Benefits of Membership

• A vibrant online and offline peer community rich in resources, expertise and support
• OSRP Connect — A members-only listserv for connection and resources
• OSRP Central — A monthly newsletter to keep you in the know with events, resources and news you can use
• Affordable group plan for liability insurance through McFarland Rowlands for full Legal Defence. Its premiums that do not go up if there is a legal case or College complaint against you
• An extended group health benefits plan through Equitable Life that includes dental, prescription drugs, extended health care including psychotherapy, travel insurance, and much more – tailored to your and your household’s needs
• Liaison with the CRPO to ensure your voice is heard
• Opportunity to join vibrant committees including Advocacy, EDI, Wellness, Connect, Ethics and more
• Opportunity to join the Board of Directors

New Race-Based Data Collection Initiative

The OSRP is committed to respecting and advancing our diversity and reducing inequities by gathering information about our community in order to establish a baseline that measures success. The collection of race-based data is an essential component of addressing disparities prevalent in Ontario's Health Care system.

We invite you to complete the five demographic questions found when you click, EDIT PROFILE, on the renewal page. The option to not participate in any particular question is available for those choosing “prefer not to say” for one or more of the data points.

This Initiative is part of a larger data collection project launched across Canada, in collaboration with the Black Psychology Section of the Canadian Psychological Association.

Thank you in advance for participating in the efforts to reduce barriers like systemic inequities in Ontario. 

More Good News! We have chosen NOT to raise our rates, despite inflation, in view of helping our members continue to thrive in your professional home, the OSRP.

Annual Membership Rates for July 1, 2023—June 30, 2024 are as follows:

1. Clinical and Qualifying Members: registered as RP or RP (Qualifying) in good standing with CRPO — $195 + 25.35 HST = $220.35
2. Friend of the Society: individuals interested in helping professions in the wider community who wish to be affiliated with the Society — $125 + $16.25 HST = $141.25
3. Retired: former Clinical or Qualifying member no longer practising psychotherapy — $50 + $6.50 HST = $56.50
4. Student Member: registered in a CRPO-recognized program — $95 + $12.35 HST = $107.35

Your amount owing may be less if you or someone you referred took advantage of our membership invitation program.

Your discount code for 2023 is OSRP2023-150. If no discount code appears here, it is because you do not have one.

IMPORTANT: For information on how to renew (and apply your discount, if applicable), please read this document.

Don't have a password? Create it here https://osrp.ca/Sys/ResetPasswordRequest.

Click here to renew your membership

If you have any questions, please contact Society Manager Evonne Brant at mail@psychotherapyontario.org or call 416-923-4050 – all messages with be returned during normal business hours

Don't know your password? Reset it here https://osrp.ca/Sys/ResetPasswordRequest

Warm regards,
The OSRP Board of Directors and Administrative Staff

Calling all RPQs: did you know that 50% of your clinical supervision hours can be group supervision?! At $95 for 2 hours, group supervision eases the financial strain of achieving your 100 hours, and keeps your $ in your pocket.

To book a free consult click here https://towardsindependentpractice.janeapp.com/

The OSRP will be holding its 31st Annual General Meeting on:

Friday, November 24
1-3 p.m. on Zoom

OSRP Quorum requires 10% of members – so we will need 130+ members to sign up or send proxies.

Door prizes will be available for those who attend.

It’s a great chance to connect with fellow members, and vote on matters of importance to you.

Details and registration information to follow.