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Copyright © Fieldwork Counselling
At Fieldwork we have two categories of counsellors: Associate Counsellors, and Registered Counsellors.
Our Registered Counsellors include Registered Clinical Counsellors (RCCs) and Registered Social Workers (RSWs). RCCs belong to the BC Association of Clinical Counsellors, while RSWs belong to the BC College of Social Workers. Insurance plans typically cover one or both of these designations.
Our Associate Counsellors have completed Masters-level coursework in counselling and are currently accumulating the hours they need for registration with the BCACC or BCCSW. Their services are not eligible for insurance coverage, which is why their rates are lower.
A consult is a short introductory where you can get to know a counsellor, and determine whether they’re a fit for you. During the consult, a counsellor will ask you some questions about what you’re experiencing, and your goals for counselling. You can also feel free to ask the counsellor any questions you have. Consults are free, and are held either by phone (in the case of Registered Counsellors) or online (in the case of Associates).
Sessions meanwhile are where ‘the work’ actually happens. At Fieldwork, each of our counsellors offers a choice of online and in-person sessions.
To book a consult, visit the profile page of the counsellor you’re looking to potentially work with. You’ll see a button that will take you to their booking page. You can feel free to book consults with as many counsellors as you like.
If you’re a returning client, you can use the “book a session” link in the top right (on desktop) or the menu (on mobile) to go to our online booking platform.
To reschedule a consult, please contact the counsellor through our contact form.
To reschedule a session, log into your client profile. There you can easily look through your counsellor’s schedule and find a new time.
You can cancel a session by logging into your profile. There you will find a list of your scheduled sessions, and you can easily cancel any that you need to.
Note that a session time is booked just for you, so we require 24 hours’ notice to cancel a session. We bill for sessions cancelled with less notice, and for missed sessions. If you’re sick or are dealing with an emergent situation, please contact your counsellor to talk about options.
Counsellors who are waitlisting are booked several weeks out with clients. You’re welcome to still book a consult with them, and they will let you know approximately when their next openings are.
Don’t worry! You can add yourself to your counsellor’s waitlist. If a cancellation occurs during the days/times you specify, you’ll receive an email notification. You can then choose to take the spot if you like.
We’d be happy to! We’d suggest first taking a look at our search page to see if you can find a counsellor who fits what you’re looking for — this is the fastest way, and we offer fairly specific search criteria.
You can also use our match process to get a personalized response. Just answer a few questions, and we’ll email you back with two recommendations for counsellors who closely fit what you’re looking for. If for whatever reason we can’t offer any recommendations, we’ll at least suggest outside practices or services that may be able to help.
We can definitely appreciate the desire to help someone you love! However, much like going to the gym, counselling requires a high degree of self-led motivation and effort to be successful. Beyond that, our intake process requires signing several forms, such as an understanding of the limits of confidentiality, which cannot be agreed to by a third party.
For these reasons (amongst others), we require clients to initiate and maintain their own counselling process.
Due to ethical requirements, you and your partner or family member will need to see different counsellors. While it may be tempting for invite your loved one to see the same counsellor as you, there are a few big risks involved in this for you both, and we prefer to play it safe. Your counsellor definitely appreciates the confidence you have in them, though!
This guideline, as you might expect, does not apply to family or couples counselling.
Each of our Registered counsellors have their own rate, which is determined by their experience and training. The exact fee is also determined by the length of a session, and the type (e.g. one-on-one, couples, family, etc). Counsellors with more experience and specialized training have higher fees. Our Associates’ rates are the same across the board.
You’ll find counsellors fees’ on their profile pages. The fee listed is for a standard 50-minute, one-on-one session. Longer sessions, and couples’ sessions have higher fees.
We accept all major credit cards and select debit cards (those that carry carry the Visa or Mastercard logo). We currently do not accept cash or Interac e-transfers.
Our Registered Counsellors are recognized by most major insurance providers, including Canada Life, Pacific Blue Cross, Great West Life, Green Shield, and Sunlife. However, whether counsellors are actually covered for you depends on the insurance plan your employer has purchased from the insurance provider.
The best way to confirm your coverage is to log into your provider portal, and check what’s covered under your counselling or mental health benefits. If you plan lists Registered Clinical Counsellors and/or Registered Social Workers, one or more of our counsellors will be covered for you. You can then use our search page to find a counsellor who will be covered.
Not at this time. In BC, Registered Clinical Counsellors cannot direct bill insurance companies. We are hoping to gain this ability in the next few years with regulatory changes proposed by the BC government.
In our experience, sliding scales a less-than-ideal solution to the problem of counselling’s affordability, because even the lower end of these scales tend to be out of reach for many people.
Our Associate Counsellors offer high-quality counselling services at a rate well below typical sliding scales. You can learn more about this service, and our Associates here.
To be reimbursed for your counselling sessions, go to your provider portal and start the process for submitting a claim. Fill out the form, upload the receipt you were emailed after your session, and you should be reimbursed within a matter of days. We recommend submitting a claim after your first session to ensure you are indeed covered.
Unfortunately at this time we do not bill government insurers and plans, including ICBC, CVAP, FNHA, and VAC.
Yes, but unfortunately we can’t assist with this, as it would introduce potential ethical and confidentiality concerns for us. For example, a third party being billed would be aware of whether, and how often a person was accessing counselling.
That said, we do respect that any arrangements you make independently with a loved one are your own business.
Have a question we haven’t answered here? Get in touch, and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible, often in less than a couple hours.
Copyright © Fieldwork Counselling