A Psychiatrist is a medical doctor (MD) who specializes in mental health and is covered by OHIP. They:

Provide assessment and diagnosis for mental health disorders

Assess the need for biological interventions, such as medication, to support well-being

Provide some psychotherapy (but mostly are not able due to time and OHIP constraints)

Some may be involved in medical research

A Clinical Psychologist is a mental health practitioner, who (usually) has a PhD in a specific field of research. They:

Provide detailed assessments for mental health disorders, in addition to learning disorders and other accessibility needs (A Psychoeducational Assessment is done by a Psychologist, not a Psychiatrist). They are not legally allowed to prescribed medication.

Provides psychotherapy

May be involved in ongoing research and teaching in the field, particularly around psychotherapy

A Registered Psychotherapist is a Master’s Level mental health practitioner, who has undergone intensive training in the act of Psychotherapy and Counselling. They:

Provide Psychotherapy and Counselling for all types of concerns, mild or severe.

Does not diagnose or assess for mental illness, nor prescribe medication

May be involved in research and / or teaching, and some do their Doctorate

Other health professionals, such as Registered Social Workers (RSW) and Registered Nurse Practitioner (RN) are legally allowed to provide psychotherapy as part of the Psychotherapy Act

Typically, one seeks out a Psychiatrist to receive a diagnosis and discuss psychopharmaceutical interventions. If one needs a Psychoeducational assessment, they will seek to work with a Clinical Psychologist.

For therapy, one can find high quality therapists, with extensive mental health training, whether they are Psychologists, Registered Psychotherapists, Social Workers or Nurse Practitioners. What matters most is their level of training and expertise in the concerns you particularly have.

Let’s keep it simple:

Client lets therapist know they are looking for psychiatric support

Therapist adds them to the Psychotherapy Matters Database.

Through the database, the client receives a referral form from a family physician to fill out indicating that the client would benefit from psychiatric care (you can also do a walk-in; if people have trouble getting a doctor's note, psychotherapy matters can assist).

After receiving referral, therapist books a meeting client and psychiatrist as soon as an appointment is available

For the most concise summary, please watch this video put out by Psychotherapy Matters.

As a collaborative care system, therapists are present at each and every meeting, providing feedback and insight to the psychiatrist, while receiving their professional guidance. Clients do not pay for the psychiatrist, but they do pay their therapist to be at the meeting (like any other meeting, except this one would be with an MD).

It might take around 3-6 weeks (MAXIMUM), but there are possibly even appointments available same time, or within a week, as we have seen.

Unless you want to change, yes. Once you work with one psychiatrist, they remain your support unless you want to switch.

Follow-ups can happen regularly, depending on your needs. If you are trying medication, there can be follow-ups for medication changes, whether in dosage or in kind, as well as ongoing care for all needs.

PM psychiatrists send all relevant medical requests to the family physician, who then makes official recommendations, such as prescriptions, for their clients.

If you stop working with your Resolvve therapist, Resolvve can either assist you in finding another therapist on our platform, who will also be registered with PM. You can then continue your care with the same psychiatrist and a different therapist. If you wish to find a therapist outside of Resolvve, we will help our client find a therapist who is a member of PM and is in their database, so that they can continue to receive Psychiatric care.