The Ontario Association of Mental Health Professionals is an incorporated provincial body with a mandate to provide for the professional needs of its members and to meet the needs of the community in identifying and certifying competent mental health practitioners.
Below you will find all information related to certification including what certification is, why you should certify, the process required for certification, and how to keep up to date with your certification.
For more information email us at certification@oamhp.ca
Benefits of Certification
Becoming a certified member has numerous professional benefits including, but not limited to:
- Visual confirmation of competence and expertise and a continual updating of skills and knowledge
- Usage of restricted “(cert)OAMHP” designation
- A peer validation process that attests to a member's refined professional abilities, competencies, knowledge, and skills within an area of specialization
- Internet client referral system via OAMHP website
- Opportunity to participate on select OAMHP Board of directors Committees
- Ability to become better acquainted with fellow colleagues at OAMHP
- Issued a Certificate of Competence in their area of expertise (i.e., Consultant, Counsellor, Psychometrist, or Psychotherapist).
Process for Certification
Step 1: Ensure you fit the basic requirements
In order to begin the process of certification, applicants must:
- Be a current general member of OAMHP in good standing.
- Have obtained significant field experience in their related field of mental health (3000 hours), either full-time or part-time work within the past 5 years.
- 3000 hours of work equates to:
- 30 hours/week for 24 months (2 years)
- 20 hours/week for 36 months (3 years)
- 12 hours/week for 60 months (5 years)
- 3000 hours of work equates to:
Step 2: Submit all necessary documents
Submit the following forms as evidence of your competence in the field of mental health:
- A fully complete application form that includes details about:
- Education related to the practice of mental health;
- Continuing education / ongoing professional development;
- Supervised experience, as it relates to the practice of mental health;
- Professional employment experience, as it relates to the practice of mental health;
- Professional liability insurance; and
- Other details you wish to provide that relates to your experience within mental health.
- References from two (2) professionals who are familiar with your work, can attest to your personal and professional qualities and competence, and are acceptable to the Committee (i.e., an individual who is able to speak to the applicant’s provision of mental health services).
- If you are in private practice, you must also:
- Demonstrate that consultation with supervisors and/or qualified colleagues is taking place on an ongoing basis,
- Provide a copy of your professional liability insurance,
- Provide a copy of your “informed consent” forms (e.g., health consent form, privacy policy, professional disclosure form) used with clients.
- Pay $150 fee to open your file.
Step 3: Provide Additional Documents
Written Take Home Examination
You are required to complete a written take home examination. The examination will help the committee to evaluate your theoretical knowledge as well as your knowledge about ethical and professional practice issues.
Once OAMHP has reviewed your application and references, you will be sent the take home examination. You have up to two (2) months to complete this examination and return it to OAMHP via email or fax. You must receive a minimum of 70% to pass the examination.
Documentation to Confirm Registration Status (Regulated Members Only)
If you are a regulated member, you must provide documentation to confirm your registration status.
Step 4: In-person Interview
Once all documentation is completed, and the examination is passed (if applicable), you will be contacted for an in-person interview.
This 45-minute interview will focus on reviewing your standard of practice, ethics, career objectives, supervision, and your specialization and competency. The interview panel members will be made up of certified members who areas of expertise are representative of yours (e.g. registered psychotherapists will be interviewed by certified members who are also registered psychotherapists).
To prepare, we recommend you review OAMHP’s Code of Ethics, OAMHP’s Standards of Practice, and your written examination. If you are a regulated member, we recommend that you review the ethics and standards of practice of your relevant Regulatory College(s).
Step 5: Await your results
After the interview stage, OAMHP will contact within one (1) week to inform you of your certification status.
If you are approved for certification, you are to pay the outstanding balance of $100. Upon receipt of the outstanding balance, you will be issued an updated membership number and a Certificate of Competence in your area of specialization. You will receive this framed certificate via mail.
Already certified? Keep your certification up to date!
Certification at OAMHP is valid for a period of two (2) years. It is expected that all certified members continue to be professionally responsible by keeping current with on-going research, therapeutic application, assessment innovation and general applied information. During this period, we recommend that you retain proof of course/workshop attendance such as receipts, course or workshop content, presenter and other related documentation.
OAMHP will contact you three (3) months prior to your certification expiration date via email. The recertification email will include all documentation necessary for recertification and your recertification deadline date, which is due one (1) month prior to your expiration date.
To recertify, you must provide the following:
- Evidence of your professional development CEC activities* (40 CECs over 2 years)
- Evidence of supervision either through individual supervisors/consulting or peer supervision/consulting
- Evidence of professional liability insurance
- If you are in private practice, a copy of your “Consent Form” that you use with your clients.
- Pay your $30 recertification administration fee
If you do not recertify before the two-year expiration date, you will need to begin certification as a new applicant. Please contact OAMHP for more information.
* The Certification Committee has developed the following guidelines for acceptable or recommended professional development activities (maximum needed to report - 40 hours of PD or 40 CECs)
- Attending OAMHP Annual Conference, workshops, and webinars (CECs dependent on workshops attended);
- Development and delivery of a workshop/seminar (8-16hrs);
- Getting certified in a practice relevant specialty (8-40hrs);
- Other workshops and seminars (must indicate duration and relevance to practice);
- Book review in Psychologica (4hrs);
- Publication of article in Psychologica (8hrs);
- Publication of a book relevant to practice (40hrs);
- Publication of article in a professional journal (8-16hrs); and/or
- Publication of article in any magazine (4hrs).
Fees
Total certification fee is $250.00.
A non-refundable payment of $150 is payable at the time of application to open an ongoing file.
The balance ($100.00) is to be forwarded upon satisfactory demonstration of competence at which time the applicant will be issued a Certificate of Competence.
Recertification: $30 every 2 years
Validated Supervisor Designation
Many experienced mental health professionals will be asked or will seek the opportunity to provide clinical supervision to other mental health professionals. While the College of Registered Psychotherapists of Ontario (CRPO) provides criteria to assess a mental health professional’s capability to provide professional supervision, the College itself does not assess or evaluate supervisors. The OAMHP uses CRPO criteria to evaluate Certified members who wish to have their supervisory skills formally validated. The OAMHP is currently the only Ontario organization that formally validates supervisors.
The Validated Supervisor is a designation for Certified members to demonstrate their knowledge and skills in the clinical supervision of mental health professionals. This designation promotes competence and professionalism of clinical supervisors which strengthens the competency of our members.
The process of supervision validation involves peer assessment of supervisory training received in addition to formal knowledge and practical experience. The requirements of a supervisor will also be reviewed. At the conclusion of the process, the mental health professional will have a greater understanding of the expectations of a supervisor in Ontario, verification of their supervisor status, and the right to identify themselves professionally as a Certified and Validated Supervisor.
Requirements
- Be a Certified member of OAMHP;
- Be a member in good standing of a regulatory college whose registrants may practice psychotherapy and meet any supervisory requirements of their college:
- For members of CRPO, they must meet CRPO’s “independent practice” requirement;
- Have completed 30 hours of directed learning in providing clinical supervision.
Once validated as a supervisor, Certified Members will be able to identify this designation publicly with: Certified Member, Validated Supervisor, OAMHP or (cert-S)OAMHP. To recognize their experience, knowledge, and skills, OAMHP will send Validated Supervisors a framed certificate indicating their validation as a clinical supervisor and will invite Validated Supervisors to participate in supervisor peer support groups organized by OAMHP.
Process:
- Complete the Application for Validated Supervisor for Registered Professionals form, which includes:
- A description of your current work as a clinical supervisor;
- Copy of your current resume which lists experience as a clinical supervisor;
- Copy of your Supervision Agreement used with your supervisees;
- A description of how you evaluate supervision;
- A description of your clinical supervision model;
- Demonstration of at least 30 hours of directed learning in providing clinical supervision
- Pay application fee of $135;
- Complete an interview with members of the Certification Committee to validate the applicants’ knowledge and skills in supervision.
How to Complete your Application
The Validated Supervisor application is completed online. You can begin it, save it for later, and come back to complete it when you are ready.
You will be asked to:
- Describe your relevant experience as a clinical supervisor. This is about the work you do and/or have done. How many supervisees do you have? In what circumstances? Is it part of your regular work or something you have taken on outside your regular work? We want to understand your current role as and experience in being a clinical supervisor.
- Describe how you evaluate the supervision you engage in and the supervisory relationship. This is about how you and your supervisee assess the effectiveness of the supervision. It might include information on the kinds of diagnostic formative, and summative evaluations you and your supervisee complete. You can see our Guidelines for Supervision Evaluation for ideas.
- Diagnostic evaluations are done at the beginning to determine what needs to be worked on.
- Formative evaluations are done during the supervisory relationship to determine what is working and what is not working.
- Summative evaluations are done at the end of the supervisory relationship to determine whether supervision goals have been achieved.
- Describe your clinical supervision model. This is about your theory of supervision. It might include things like how directive you are with your supervisees, what theory of supervision you subscribe to, how formal your supervision relationships are, whether it is more mentoring or more teaching, and other items relevant to your ideas on supervision. You can see our Guidelines for Clinical Supervision Model for ideas.
- Describe the directed learning in providing clinical supervision you have completed (minimum 30 hours).
- Upload the Supervision Agreement that you use with your Supervisees. This is the contract between supervisor and supervisee that outlines various aspects of the supervisory relationship such as the purpose, goals, and objectives of supervision and the rights and responsibilities of both parties. You can see our Guidelines for Supervision Contract if you need some direction.
- Upload your current CV that includes your experience in clinical supervision.
- You also have the option to upload other documents you feel will support your application for Validated Supervisor.
Maintaining Validation
Every 2 years, at your Certification renewal, Validated Supervisors will be required to complete the Validated Supervisor Renewal form to include with the Certified Member renewal. Validated Supervisors will be asked to document:
- That you have provided a minimum of 12 hours of clinical supervision. To help you keep track, you can use the Supervision Tracking Form;
- That you have completed professional development in providing clinical supervision. Of the 40 credits required for Certification renewal, Validated Supervisions will need to document a minimum of eight (8) Continuing Education Credits (CECs) that support your work as a clinical supervisor. To help you keep track, you can use the CEC Tracking Sheet.
If you have questions, email certification@oamhp.ca