Chapter 3

Meeting Professional Standards

What are the requirements to be considered a profession?

Occupation must be:

1. an intellectual activity based on a particular body of knowledge rather than a routine

2. practical rather than theoretical

3. oriented toward service to society

When was the first act defining the procedures and standards for the regulation of the profession of psychology in Canada?

In Ontario in 1960

What is the one province/territory that does not have established professional regulations to oversee the practice of psychologists?

Yukon

What provinces regulate the activity of psychotherapy?

Ontario and Quebec

How does Quebec legislation define psychotherapy?

psychological treatment for a mental disorder, behavioural disturbance, or other problem

How does Ontario define psychotherapy?

the assessment and treatment of cognitive, emotional, or behavioural disturbance by psychotherapeutic means, delivered through a therapeutic relationship based primarily on verbal or non-verbal communication

Which province or territory does not require supervised practice subsequent to obtaining a graduate degree for registration?

Quebec

Which provinces or territories do not require the EPPP for registration?

NWT and Quebec

What are the five core competencies that undergrid minimally acceptable practice?

1. interpersonal relationships

2. assessment and evaluation

3. intervention and consultation

4. research

5. ethics and standards

Why are regulatory practice standards better than a code of ethics at protecting the public?

because they set minimum prescriptive and proscriptive standards of professional behaviour

What are the characteristics of effective practice standards?

1. They deal with the psychologist’s professional behaviour and do not determine or dictate professional judgement

2. They primarily protect the public interest and only secondarily protect professional interests through maintaining public confidence and trust in the profession

3. They are as non-intrusive as possible, interfering with professional behaviour only when necessary to protect public from harm

4. They are as explicit as possible concerning what behaviour is acceptable and what is not

5. They are sufficient unto themselves, without depending on additional explanatory materials for interpretation

6. They are attainable, compulsory, and the basis for formal disciplinary action

What are practice guidelines?

Should be consistent with both the code of ethics and practice standards, while providing greater detail than either by integrating specialized knowledge into beneficent practice

What are the two means by which psychologists respond to professional misconduct?

1. professional ethics committees

2. provincial/territorial discipline committees

What are the roles of the CPA ethics committee?

1. negotiate informal resolutions of complaints with mutual consent of the concerned parties

2. conduct preliminary investigations of complains made to CPA about the ethical behaviour of its members

3. make formal ethics complaints to the board of directors when the preliminary investigation concludes that it is warranted

How many times has the CPA invoked its authority to expel a member?

once

Who can initiate a complaint in most jurisdictions?

the college, a member of the public, or a registered psychologist

What is the most commonly alleged concerns?

that a psychologist is incompetent or biased in the provision of services, provided an opinion about someone with whom they had insufficient professional contact, or had sexual relations with a client

What are the steps to take when attempting to deal with difficult situations in an ethically responsible manner?

1. confirm the issue

2. safeguard confidentiality

3. consult with others

4. address the issue

5. involve others in an action plan