RCC and RPC and RTC and MPCC and CCC and RSW and R.Psych — oh my!
RCC and RPC and RTC and MPCC and CCC and RSW and R.Psych — oh my!
Searching for a counsellor in British Columbia is about as straightforward as reading a parking sign in Vancouver with 6 different time restrictions, 3 permit zones, and an “except holidays” clause.
Okay, maybe that’s a bit exaggerated…
There’s a lot to clear up when it comes to figuring out what all the letters mean, who does what, and how to decide who will be best for you. It’s hard to be an educated consumer even with good labels on products—or people!
Let’s do a deep dive to demystify things, answer some important questions, and suggest some things you might not have considered yet. We’ll look at the 11 (!) mental health professionals that operate in BC, and by the end, you’ll have the information you need to choose a counsellor that’s right for you.
Here’s a venn diagram of what we’ll be untangling today:
Psychologist | Psychiatrist | Registered Psychiatric Nurse | Social Worker | Registered Clinical Counsellor | Canadian Clinical Counsellor | Master Practitioner in Clinical Counselling | Registered Professional Counsellor | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Designation |
R. Psych |
MD | ||||||
Regulated by |
BC Government | |||||||
We’ve got a lot to cover! (Bookmark this page if you want to come back later.)
Practical Concerns
Before we dive into the details, here are some common answers to practical concerns.
How much does a counsellor cost in BC?
This is a great question, and also really difficult to answer accurately!
Counselling costs in BC typically range from $120 to $250 per session, depending on several factors:
- Publicly-funded services (psychologists, psychiatrists through MSP): Free with a referral, but often have long wait times
- Registered Clinical Counsellors (RCC): $160-$220 per session on average
- Other registered counsellors: $120-$200 per session on average
Counsellors in Vancouver and Victoria typically charge more than those in smaller communities.
Is counselling covered by MSP in BC?
Counselling is partially covered by MSP in BC, but only for specific professionals:
MSP covers: Registered Psychologists (R.Psych), Psychiatrists (MD), Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPN), and Social Workers (RSW/RCSW).
MSP does not cover: Registered Clinical Counsellors (RCC) and other registered counsellors. However, most private extended health insurance plans do cover these services.
Which designations are typically covered by extended health benefits (private health insurance)?
It depends! While it’s very common for insurance plans to cover some kind of mental health service providers, the scope of coverage varies between providers and also between employers!
For example, an insurance company may provide employees of Company A a plan that covers psychologists, RCCs, and RSWs, while providing employees of Company B a plan that covers psychologists, “social workers,” and anyone who is a “registered counsellor” with a self-regulatory association.
Before starting work with a counsellor, check with your insurance plan to see if they recognize the counsellor’s designation. If they don’t yet, ask your Human Resources department to consider adding it to your insurance plan. The terms of these employee benefit plans are negotiated by employers, and they can be changed!
Which mental health professionals can diagnose mental health conditions in BC?
Only Registered Psychologists (R. Psych), Psychiatrists (MD), Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPN), and Registered Clinical Social Workers (RCSW) are qualified to diagnose mental health conditions.
Which mental health professionals can prescribe medication in BC?
Only two types of mental health professionals can prescribe medication in BC:
- Psychiatrists (MD) – medical doctors specializing in mental health
- Registered Psychiatric Nurses (RPN) – nurses with specialized psychiatric training
Some family doctors and pediatricians may also prescribe mental health medications. Psychologists and counsellors cannot prescribe medication.
What's the difference between regulated vs. unregulated practitioners?
FACTBC (The Federation of Associations for Counselling Therapists in BC) is a group of associations who have been advocating for the public and lobbying the BC government to regulate counselling therapists for decades. They write:
At present, there is no government-authorized body to ensure that those claiming to be counsellors and psychotherapists in British Columbia have the competencies and the accountability needed to make their services safe and effective.
Currently in BC, our government doesn’t ensure that those claiming to be counsellors and psychotherapists have the training and oversight needed to provide safe and effective services. (Except for the regulated professions listed below.)
Instead, we have a number of “self-regulatory” associations that ensure that their members meet specific, often strict requirements to join and are held accountable for their actions. By working with a counsellor who is a member of one of these organizations, you can verify a counsellor’s credentials, and you have an agency to complain to should anything go wrong.
Unfortunately, anyone can legally offer counselling services in BC without being a member of one of these organizations. This means that they are not held to any specific ethical standards, they aren’t necessarily being supervised by a qualified mentor, and there is no recourse for clients who may wish to file a complaint.
Regulation of psychotherapy is coming in BC (likely in late 2027), and it is long overdue. I hope this change helps to increase public safety, trust, and much-needed clarity in the profession.
How can I verify someone's credentials?
All regulated professionals will either be listed on their college or association’s website, or their college or association will verify them on a case-by-case basis.
To confirm that a counselling professional’s credentials:
- Ask them for their designation
- Look them up on their college or association’s directory OR email the college association to check. (All colleges or associations will offer at least 1 of these options for the public.)
Table of Provincially-Regulated Designations and their Colleges
Designations | College | Website |
|---|---|---|
R. Psych |
College of Health and Care Professionals of BC (CHCPBC) | |
MD |
College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC (CPSBC) | |
RPN |
BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM) | |
RSW, RCSW |
BC College of Social Workers (BCCSW) |
Table of Self-Regulated Designations and their Associations
Designations | Association | Website |
|---|---|---|
RCC |
BC Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC) | |
CCC |
Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA) | |
RPC, MPCC |
Canadian Professional Counsellors Association (CPCA) | |
RTC, MTC |
Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists of Canada (ACCT) |
Can I work with both a psychologist/psychiatrist and a counsellor?
Yes! It’s common to have both a psychologist or psychiatrist on your team as well as a counsellor, if that’s helpful. A psychiatrist can help with determining a diagnosis and prescribing medication (a psychologist can’t prescribe medication) and a counsellor can support you with adjusting to that new diagnosis and treatment.
If you want to jump ahead and learn how to find the right counsellor for you, skip to Part 2 now.
Otherwise, we’ll explore the nitty gritty details of the 11 different mental health professionals that operate in BC and look at what the letters mean (e.g. MPCC, RCC, etc.).
Understanding BC's Mental Health Professionals
Diving deep down this rabbit hole means we need to talk about a few key terms and concepts. Click to expand any to read the definitions.
Terminology
Ethical Standards
Ethical standards are set by a counsellor’s regulatory association and outline the values, principles, and standards of practice that all members must uphold. They are designed to protect and promote the welfare of clients.
Supervision
Supervision involves professional mentorship by an experienced, qualified practitioner to facilitate the counsellor’s growth and ensure they are practicing ethically and within the boundaries of their profession and abilities.
In counselling, “supervision” doesn’t mean that another person is in the room with you and your counsellor. Instead, this is someone that your counsellor can debrief with and learn from in a separate meeting. (Supervisors are bound by the same confidentiality rules as counsellors.)
Accountability
Accountability here refers to the relationship a counsellor has with their regulatory body. These organizations are in charge of admitting only qualified counsellors as well as receiving and resolving disputes. This is important because it provides clients with recourse should anything go wrong. When counsellors are accountable, they are held to specific and transparent ethical standards and are supervised by a qualified mentor.
Scope of Practice
Scope of practice refers to the boundaries of a counsellor’s work. It is determined by two things:
- What the counsellor’s regulatory association or college says they can and cannot do
- What the counsellor feels comfortable and competent to do based on their skill and training
“Protected” Titles
In BC, certain regulated professions are legally referred to by specific titles, and these professionals have exclusive use of those titles.
For example:
- “Dietitian” is a protected title, but “nutritionist” isn’t.
- “CPA” is protected, but “accountant” isn’t.
- “Psychologist” is protected, but “counsellor” or “psychotherapist” aren’t.
(If you’re curious, here’s the full list of all protected titles in BC.)
Regulated Professions
If you’re looking for mental health care in BC, you might be considering psychologists, psychiatrists, counsellors, psychotherapists, or social workers.
It may not be obvious what sets them apart from one another, so let’s break it down, starting with the 5 provincially-regulated designations that may offer clinical counselling to British Columbians.
Everyone who works in these roles have completed specific professional training from an accredited university, are accountable to governmental regulatory agencies (called “colleges”), follow strict ethical guidelines, and have their services paid for by public health care (MSP), though some private health insurance plans may also cover their services.
Psychologists
- Designation: Registered Psychologist (R. Psych)
- Education: Doctorate degree (Ph.D)
- Regulated by: Government of BC
- Accountable to: College of Health and Care Professionals of BC (CHCPBC)
- Scope of practice: Diagnosis of mental health issues and clinical counselling
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Public (MSP) and some extended health insurance plans
Psychiatrists
- Designation: Medical doctor (MD)
- Education: Doctor of Medicine degree
- Regulated by: Government of BC
- Accountable to: College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC (CPSBC)
- Scope of practice: Diagnosis of mental health issues, prescribing medication, and clinical counselling (rare)
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Public (MSP) and some extended health insurance plans
Psychiatric Nurses
- Designation: Registered Psychiatric Nurse (RPN)
- Education: Bachelor degree in psychiatric nursing (B.Sc)
- Regulated by: Government of BC
- Accountable to: BC College of Nurses and Midwives (BCCNM)
- Scope of practice: Diagnosis of mental health issues, prescribing medication, and clinical counselling
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Public (MSP) and some extended health insurance plans
Social Workers
- Designations: Registered Social Worker (RSW) and Registered Clinical Social Worker (RCSW)
- Education: Social workers providing counselling services must have at least a Bachelor of Social Work (BSW) degree, and some may have a Master of Social Work (MSW) degree. RCSWs have completed an MSW degree, additional training in counselling and psychotherapy, and additional clinical supervision.
- Regulated by: Government of BC
- Accountable to: BC College of Social Workers (BCCSW)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling and other supportive social services. RCSWs can also diagnose mental health conditions.
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Public (MSP) and some extended health insurance plans
Counsellors & Psychotherapists
Let’s keep going and dive into the other designations.
Unlike with psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers, counsellors aren’t provincially-regulated. Instead, most counsellors are members of “self-regulatory” organizations.
Self-regulation might sound like each mental health professional somehow regulates themselves, but this just means that they are regulated by non-governmental associations.
Similar to the provincial colleges, these associations also serve to protect the public through:
- Competency-based registration (counsellors must qualify in order to join through specific education pathways, sometimes by also writing an exam)
- Setting ethical standards and the boundaries of members’ scope of practice
- Setting continuing education requirements (counsellors must continue to train throughout their careers)
- Handling complaints and disciplinary action
Also, since the titles “counsellor” and “psychotherapist” in BC aren’t protected (yet), anyone in BC can call themselves one without being a registered member of these groups.
As these titles don’t have set definitions, in BC we use “counsellor” and “psychotherapist” interchangeably. If you encounter someone who uses one title and not the other, ask them what it means to them.
Registered Clinical Counsellor (RCC)
- Education: Master of Arts (MA) or Master of Education (M.Ed) degree
- Regulated by and accountable to: BC Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling
- Competency-based: Education & practical experience
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
Canadian Clinical Counsellor (CCC)
- Education: Master of Arts (MA) or Master of Education (M.Ed) degree
- Regulated by and accountable to: Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association (CCPA)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling
- Competency-based: Education & practical experience
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
Master Practitioner in Clinical Counselling (MPCC)
- Education: Diploma (minimum) including advanced training requirements
- Regulated by and accountable to: Canadian Professional Counsellors Association (CPCA)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling
- Competency-based: Education, qualifying exam, and practical experience
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
Registered Professional Counsellor (RPC)
- Education: Diploma (minimum)
- Regulated by and accountable to: Canadian Professional Counsellors Association (CPCA)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling*
- Competency-based: Education, qualifying exam, and practical experience
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
* The CPCA actually refers to RPCs’ scope of practice as “mental health counselling” but that’s getting into the weeds and beyond the scope of this article!
Master Therapeutic Counsellor (MTC)
- Education: Certificate (minimum) including advanced training requirements
- Regulated by and accountable to: Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists of Canada (ACCT)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling
- Competency-based: Education & practical experience
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC)
- Education: Certificate (minimum)
- Regulated by and accountable to: Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists of Canada (ACCT)
- Scope of practice: Clinical counselling
- Competency-based: Education only
- Supervision: Yes
- Funded by: Some extended health insurance plans
And since anyone in BC can legally call themselves a “counsellor” or “psychotherapist” right now, here’s how it looks without being registered with a self-regulatory association:
No designation
- Education: Varies (no minimum requirement)
- Regulated by and accountable to: Nope (no public protection)
- Scope of practice: Varies (no ethical standards set)
- Supervision: No requirement
- Funded by: Pay out of pocket (no extended health insurance coverage)
So far, we’ve looked at the provincially-regulated and self-regulated professions that offer counselling services in BC, reviewed some basic terminology, and addressed some practical concerns.
Next, let’s explore how to find the right counsellor for you, and what the science says about it all.