Tales From The Vale

It's really tough to make the decision to get help, but it only gets more difficult when you enter the minefield of how to get help and who from.

This decision very much depends on your personality and what you would like to achieve, which will ultimately determine the model of therapy you choose, as well as what is offered locally.  Different approaches are available and are provided by different professions; psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors to name a few. 

So, how do you choose?

Different types of therapy is possibly a subject for another post (although check out my website for information of some of the different types of therapy), but suffice to say, it’s ‘different strokes for different folks’.  Once you have decided, the next thing to do is find someone who can provide your therapy of choice.  This is where things can get problematic.  Although there are many different professionals who can offer therapy, as a psychologist, I will focus on psychologists.  Regardless, the rules apply to all therapists: Always look for a therapist that is accredited or registered with a professional body.  

There are many people who call themselves ‘Psychologists’, ‘Chartered Psychologists’ or even ‘Consultant Psychologists’.  While some of these people may have a qualification in psychology, this does not equate to the level of training and professional standards required for them to register with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).  Unfortunately, the title psychologist is not protected, meaning that it is free for anyone to use, whether or not they are qualified to safely and ethically complete the work that a registered psychologist can do.  This can lead to members of the public paying for a service or treatment that at best is not grounded in relevant theory, to at the worst receiving a treatment that could do harm.  It’s not difficult to find examples in the media where the psychological treatment of reality TV participants in particular, is questioned.  This most public of arena needs to be setting the standards by making sure that appropriately qualified professionals are employed; thus ensuring that a ’duty of care’ is maintained in a comparable way to a healthcare setting where professional registration is mandatory.

All those providing psychological interventions will have their own regulatory body with a code of standards and ethics (such as BABCP, UKCP, BACP etc; sorry about the acronym jargon here).  For psychologists, the regulatory body is the HCPC.  They will only list psychologists who have completed courses that meet the robust regulations required of a professional training course.  This ensures that the psychologists on the HCPC register are skilled in the application of psychological interventions, are committed to upholding professional standards, working ethically and keeping up to date with current theory and practice through ongoing training and development.  These psychologists are allowed to use the titles protected by the HCPC, meaning that it is against the law for anyone not qualified to use them.  

The HCPC protected titles for psychologists are:

Practitioner or Registered Psychologist;

Clinical Psychologist;

Counselling Psychologist;

Educational Psychologist;

Forensic Psychologist;

Health Psychologist;

Occupational Psychologist;

Sport and Exercise Psychologist.

While no profession is free from unscrupulous people, registration such as with the HCPC ensures that issues are kept to a minimum and gives the public a place to raise concerns if and when they arise.  Whatever the service you chose, always check that the person offering you a psychological intervention or therapy is registered with the appropriate regulatory body for their profession.

All you need to check whether a psychologist is registered is their surname and an internet connection.  You can find the HCPC register online at: www.hcpc-uk.org.