December 2020
IMPORTANT: Changes coming to the QA portal
Is the only copy of your Learning Record in the QA portal?
As part of the Quality Assurance Program, registrants are required to retain a record of any materials that could be used support their participation in a learning activity reported as part of the bi-annual 40-hour requirement. CRPO does not require registrants to have copies of previously submitted self-assessments or learning plans.

CRPO’s QA portal will be permanently taken offline on December 31, 2020 for a system upgrade.

All registrants who have QA portal logins and do not have their own copies of learning records and / or who want copies of their other completed tools are strongly encouraged to enter into the system and print out or take screenshots of any materials they have in the portal before it goes offline. Watch this video or refer to these instructions on the easiest way to do this.

Those who registered with CRPO on or after November 4, 2020 are not being issued QA portal logins. Instead, these registrants are to access their Professional Development tools via a fillable PDF form or Word documents that can be maintained in a personal portfolio, along with evidence of participation in learning activities. Registrants do not need to submit these templates to CRPO until further notice.
Changes are Coming for Applicants
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As of January 4, 2021, CRPO’s application system will be offline for system improvements and will remain offline until late January 2021. As such, applicants may choose to submit their applications to CRPO on or before January 3, 2021. Alternatively, applicants are encouraged to login in late January 2021 to ensure that in-progress applications have not been affected by system upgrades. We encourage all applicants who won’t be submitting before January 4, 2021 to ensure that they have backup copies of everything posted to their application forms. Applicants may take screenshots or print from their web browser individual sections of the application.

December 23, 2020 is the last day an applicant will be able to make a payment for the Jurisprudence eLearning Module and/or application fee. As noted in the instructions, an applicant must click the Submit Regular Route Application button for their application to be received. An applicant will not be able to click the submit button if their application fee payment has not been received. It may take 3 to 5 business days for a payment to be received by CRPO.

CRPO will not be accepting any payments by any method as of December 23, 2020 until the system is back online late January 2021. Once the system is back online, CRPO will only be accepting Visa and MasterCard payments. The payments will be made directly through the online system and card numbers cannot be processed by staff. As such, please do not contact CRPO with your Visa or MasterCard information.
Bring a Regulatory Problem to our Attention
The vast majority of RPs act with integrity and provide safe, ethical and effective care. However, instances where registrants struggle to meet standards – or where those standards are inadequate - can diminish the public's trust in the profession. CRPO needs the perspective of registrants and the public about where there are problems that could be addressed by the regulator. This new form allows anyone to nominate a regulatory problem for attention.

A regulatory problem is one that causes difficulty in complying with professional standards. It could be a practice area that can pose ethical challenges (e.g. providing therapy to families going through divorce), or a common type of lapse that you have heard about in the community (e.g. inadequate record-keeping). CRPO will review, process and report on issues brought to our attention
Registration Exam Update
These are unprecedented times, and we understand and appreciate the concerns that have been raised about how the limited number of exam seats has, in some cases, impacted careers and registration. In response, we have posted a letter to our website which includes information about the following:

  • Non-exemptible legal requirements to transfer from RP (Qualifying) to RP
  • Reasons why there were fewer seats available for the October 2020 exam and efforts made by COMPASS and Yardstick to offer as many seats as possible
  • February 2021 exam dates added for registrants who received a refund because they were not able to be given a seat for the October 2020 exam
  • Remote proctoring and that the exam’s unique structure means logistical and technical requirements need to be addressed before this is an option
  • Supervision expectations for RP (Qualifying) registrants who meet clinical experience requirements to transfer categories or independent practice and were unable to sit the exam due to the pandemic restrictions
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Education Program Recognition and Renewal
The Vancouver Art Therapy Institute – Diploma is the latest educational program to receive recognition from CRPO. This means that the program sufficiently enables students to develop the required competencies for entry-to-practice in psychotherapy.
The following programs successfully renewed their recognition from CRPO for another five years:

  • Toronto Institute for Relational Psychotherapy – Diploma
  • University of Guelph – Master of Science in Couple and Family Therapy
  • Yorkville University – Master of Arts in Counselling Psychology

Visit our website for more information about the recognition process, or to review the list of other recognized programs.
Transparency in Invoicing - Provider Name
Last month, we wrote about the need for caution when other people bill on an RP’s behalf. A related issue is transparency as to who provided the therapy. Not including the name of the actual provider on invoices, receipts or forms can mislead insurers, confuse clients, and impact the reputation of the profession.

CRPO’s standard, Issuing Accurate Documents, expects registrants to “ensure that documents they sign or transmit in a professional capacity contain accurate and complete information.” While not currently explicit, it is reasonable to expect the name of the actual therapy provider to be included on documents confirming treatment of a client. It is also appropriate to expect this whether the RP issues their own invoices or someone else does so on their behalf.

Please complete our brief survey to assist as we review and clarify this issue. Responses are anonymous. 
Two New Policies Approved
Following the consideration of public consultation feedback, CRPO’ Registration Committee has approved the following two policies:

Webinar Recording: How to Expect the Unexpected in Electronic Practice
Thank you to the registrants who made Talia Singer’s webinar on electronic practice a smashing success. The recording of the webinar is now available here.
Council
The next meeting of CRPO Council will take place on January 14, 2021. Want to attend? Register ahead of time and review the guidelines on attendance
Coronavirus Updates
Did you read CRPO’s latest coronavirus bulletin? Read it here. Looking for information, resources and advice about your practice during the coronavirus pandemic? We’ve got all that on our website, plus FAQs we’re updating all the time. 
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