Quality Accessible Care

At Christian Counselling Ottawa (CCO) we are committed to providing professional and accessible counselling and psychotherapy to assist people in effectively managing life's challenges.

Let's define the different professionals who help those looking for assistance with their mental health:

Registered Psychotherapists (RPs)

Psychotherapists are regulated health professionals who use proven techniques such as cognitive behaviour, solution or emotion focused, mindfulness and other techniques aimed at changing thoughts, emotions, behaviours and improving relationships in practical ways. In Ontario, only certain regulated professionals can practice psychotherapy and they must hold an active registration with either the College of Registered Psychotherapists, College of Nurses, College of Occupational Therapists, College of Physicians and Surgeons, College of Psychologists, or the College of Social workers and Social Service Workers.

Counsellors, Life Coaches, Pastors & Spiritual Directors

They are not regulated health professions. They assist clients by providing information, advice, encouragement and life skills training.

Psychologists are mental health providers with a PhD in Psychology. Psychologists administer psychological, behavioural, and educational related assessments and they can offer official diagnoses of mental health conditions. Psychologists use the same science-based psychotherapy techniques as RPs to bring about change but they often deal with more complex cases.

Psychiatrists are medical doctors (MDs) who have specialized in the field of mental health. They work with complex disorders, perform assessments, provide medical diagnoses, and prescribe medication.

More details on each profession:

Registered Psychotherapists (RPs) who are mental health professionals with Master level degrees who are regulated to practice psychotherapy through the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario. Psychotherapy involves the use of proven therapeutic techniques (eg. cognitive behavioural, solution-focused, emotion-focused, psychodynamic, systemic, mindfulness-based, and expressive arts) to foster changes in patterns of thoughts, emotions, behaviours and relationships.  RPs see individuals, couples, families and groups in privacy, either in-person or virtually. A RP is a good choice if you are looking to make changes to troublesome thoughts, behaviours, feelings or relational skills.

Registered Social Workers (RSWs) who are mental health providers with either Bachelor or Master level degrees who are regulated through the Ontario College of Social Workers and Social Services Workers. Practitioners with a Bachelor’s degree practice in community, hospital, school, and social service settings. They tend to meet with individuals, families, organizations and communities experiencing personal, interpersonal and societal struggles to help them achieve optimal social functioning. Some social workers have continued on to do a Master’s degree (MSW) where they can specialize in practicing psychotherapy. With this specialization, they perform the same tasks as Registered Psychotherapists, described above. A general RSW is a good choice if you are looking to get connected to services in your community to address social needs; a RSW with a Master’s degree specializing in Psychotherapy is a good option if you are looking to make changes to patterns of thought, behaviour, feelings, or relationships using psychotherapy techniques.

Counsellors, Life Coaches, Pastors, Spiritual Directors, and similar, are not regulated health professions and have their own standards of education and training which need to be considered on a case-by-case basis. Typically, these professions assist clients by providing information, advice, encouragement, life skills training, instruction, spiritual direction, or focused prayer on the topic of interest. Topics are varied, from school guidance, wellness training and spiritual care, to financial planning, business planning, and grief care. Any of these counselling professions is a good choice if you are looking for targeted skills training, information, or guidance in a specific area.

Psychologists are regulated mental health providers with a PhD in Psychology and are referred to as “Dr.” even though they are not medical doctors. They are regulated by the College of Psychologists of Ontario. Unlike RPs and RSWs who cannot diagnose they are able to administer detailed testing and assessments for psychological, behavioural, and educational issues, and develop treatment plans as a result of these assessment profiles. A psychologist is a good choice if you are looking for a specific psychological assessment with corresponding follow-up treatment, or if you have a complex diagnosis which requires specialized care.

Psychiatrists are medical doctors (MDs) who have specialized in the field of mental health. They are regulated by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. As MDs, psychiatrists work with complex mental health disorders and can perform psychological assessments, provide medical diagnoses, and prescribe medication. Sessions are often shorter and more focused on assessment, diagnosis, and medication adjustments.. A psychiatrist is a good choice if you are requiring a psychological assessment and/or prescribed medication to address a mental health concern and can be accessed through your family doctor.

Registered Nurses who specialize in Mental Health and are registered with the College of Nurses of Ontario. RN Psychotherapists have received training in counselling and psychotherapy and use therapeutic techniques to foster physical, psychological, social and spiritual wellbeing. (mind, body and soul)

What professional services CCO offers:

Christian Counselling Ottawa (CCO) employs both Registered Psychotherapists and Registered Social Workers, who have attained at least a Master's degree, to provide high quality psychotherapy services to the community. Faith-based elements are integrated when desired by clients, while maintaining a focus on addressing thoughts, emotions, behaviours and relationship patterns through the use of evidence-based psychotherapy techniques. All therapists are supervised by the Clinical Director and an external Registered Psychotherapist.

Sessions can occur in CCO’s offices, at a safe and convenient location agreed upon by you and your Psychotherapist or via video conferencing.  If you have challenges CCO can help with, click “Get Started” here https://christiancounsellingottawa.ca/intake-process/

 

Accessible Services

Our services are available to all: While our therapist/counsellors are capable of integrating the principles of Christian faith with their ever present psychotherapeutic practice standards, the level of integration is entirely dependent on the client’s personal views and wishes.  We serve people of all faiths as well as those whose views do not include a faith or faith related perspective.

Geographic Accessibility: From a geographic accessibility perspective, we provide quality services from our satellite offices.

Physical Accessibility: Our accessibility policy and service delivery are compliant with AODA.

Financial Accessibility: Financial accessibility relates to affordability.  As a committed not-for-profit service provider and recognized charity, we seek to provide high quality services at minimum cost.  We use a sliding scale based on gross household income and the number of people living on that income to determine client fees. When assigning fees, we reserve the right to request proof of household income.

Thanks to the generosity of donors and a modest fundraising capacity, we are often able to offer limited subsidies to individuals who would not otherwise be able to afford even the modest fees we charge for sessions.

CCO offers therapy services for individuals (over age 16) and couples, which are covered by most insurance programs and some EAP providers.  Please inquire at Intake regarding your Plan eligibility.