Canada’s national psychology association is denouncing a proposal that could shave years off the time it takes to become a psychologist in Ontario.
Changes made by the Ford government aiming to create mental health care capacity, and a report calling out the lack of psychologists in Ontario, have prompted the provincial regulator to cut requirements to be in line with some other provinces — and to allow unlimited chances on psychologist licensing exams.
Currently, to become a psychologist in Ontario, one must complete an honours bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree, followed by either a PhD (including a yearlong residency or internship) or four years of work experience. Whether someone takes the master’s-plus-work-experience or PhD route, they must ultimately complete one year of supervised practice.
Applicants must also pass a written knowledge exam, a written ethics exam and an oral exam.
At a meeting on Friday, the College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario (CPBAO), which regulates the professions, voted to propose removing the four-year work experience requirement for those without a PhD; recognize accreditation from beyond the United States and Canada, like the United Kingdom and Australia; and end the oral exam requirement.
The college will flag the proposal to Health Minister Sylvia Jones’ office, which can then put it up for public comment before it can be implemented.
The regulator, which did not respond to a request for comment, had previously voted to change the ethics test to a “low-stakes … on-demand, learning module and no-fail examination,” according to Friday’s meeting agenda.
It also voted to allow unlimited attempts at both exams.
Provinces that don’t require four years of work experience or a PhD on top of a master’s include Alberta, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and all three territories, Ian Nicholson, council president of the CPBAO, said at the meeting on Friday.
The college watered down its requirements in part due to changes by the Ford government to make it easier for health-care workers licensed in any part of Canada or the United States to practice in Ontario “as of right.”
The CPBAO wrote in the meeting agenda that it is expecting psychologists to be added to that list, and that “more streamlined registration of Canadian labour mobility applicants will be crucial for the College to fulfill expectations from the Ministry of Health.”
“In Ontario, we have amongst the highest standards for entry into the profession — perhaps the highest standards. We’ve done this with the idea that protecting the public is best done by having higher standards,” Nicholson said at the meeting. “The government disagrees.”
While Nicholson said he believes the public interest is served by ensuring the highest possible standards, he said the government’s interpretation is about access to “adequate numbers” of psychologists.
“Do I believe that these proposals will increase the risk to the public? Probably,” he said.
“Do I believe that these proposals will increase the risk to the public greater than other parts of the (country)? I don’t think so,” he said.
“Do I believe these proposals will increase access to services for the people of Ontario? Probably,” he said.
Council member and psychologist Jacob Kaiserman said he didn’t feel comfortable signing on to a diminished definition of the profession.
“I know we’re being pressured. I know we’re being rushed into this. I’m extremely uncomfortable making a change like this — political winds of change blow in multiple directions,” he said at the meeting.
“Doing it because the other guys are doing it is not a good enough reason,” he said. “Because 20 years from now we might get told, ‘Your quality of care is too low, and across Canada we need to increase standards.’”
The health minister’s office, however, distanced the government from the decision.
“This proposal was developed and put forward by the CPBAO. It is not the result of any government legislation, and we have no plans to make such a change,” Jones’ spokesperson, Ema Popovic, said in a statement. “The Scope of Practice consultations now underway apply to each regulated health profession at their current standards.”
The regulator was also responding to the 2023-24 annual report from the province’s Fairness Commissioner, which oversees regulated professions in Ontario. That report found the CPBAO was lacking in capacity and having trouble “addressing labour market shortages.”
However, lowering standards is the wrong way to improve things, according to the CEOs and presidents of the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) and Canadian Psychological Association (CPA).
Doing so “risks the quality of care provided to Ontarians,” they warned in a Sept. 25 letter to the regulator.
“Such a move would constitute a serious threat to public safety,” the letter reads.
Instead, the OPA and CPA suggested the college could streamline registration processes for psychologists who are already licensed in other parts of Canada; allow those doing post-master’s work to practice on an interim basis; or lower supervised practice requirements for graduates with accreditation.
The two organizations also did not respond to a request for comment.