Why does GoodTherapy.org allow unlicensed and prelicensed members into the directory?
July 7th, 2007
Hi Team,
GoodTherapy.org received an email from a mental health provider concerned about how we allow unlicensed people to list on our site. We very much respect his concern for the various professions represented by our members and for the people we aim to help. This was a decision we did not make casually. We do allow prelicensed, registered, certified, and unlicensed providers to list, in addition to licensed providers. Our reasoning is explained below. If you’d like to comment on this, feel free to post your comment to our blog by clicking here but please read the following first:
First, we are not a licensing board and don’t have the resources to certify that each member is licensed correctly. If we were responsible for validating members’ license we could, in our effort to help, inadvertently contribute to the harming of others. What if we mistakenly certified a member as licensed when they actually were not? And imagine if a person was harmed in therapy because they were treated by someone verified as licensed who was actually inexperienced and unlicensed. Because of this possibility, we believe it’s actually safer for consumers to do their own homework by checking with an actual licensing board. And frankly, there’s much less liability for Goodtherapy.org to shoulder by doing it this way.
Second, licensure laws differ from state to state and country to country; and we are an international directory.
Third, we believe that there are many unlicensed folks who are good therapists and knowledgeable enough to “do no harm.” Certainly we believe that in general licensed therapists are less likely to do harm than unlicensed therapists because of the supervision hours and continuing education required of licensed individuals.
Fourth, we make efforts on our site and in our blog to inform consumers about the differences between licensed and unlicensed therapists and how to choose a “good” therapist. We encourage consumers to check the credentials of any therapist or counselor they see and to be familiar with basic ethical guidelines.
Fifth, we are very clear to the users of our site that we do not verify that the mental health care providers listed in our directory are currently or properly licensed, nor do we examine, determine, or warrant their competency. All users of our directory are required to certify that they have read our Terms and Conditions which includes the above information.
Sixth, we believe that people generally have the ability to do their own homework and to choose wisely for themselves if they are informed.
Seventh, GoodTherapy.org DOES require new members to certify, using the honor system, that: A) they are a Mental Health Professional (Counselor, Psychotherapist, Social Worker, Marriage & Family Therapist, Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Physician, Nurse Practitioner, or other related professional); and B) that they have graduate level academic training in psychotherapy and mental health counseling and a degree from an accredited institution.
Eighth, we review every new listing and delete one’s that are suspect. In some cases, when profiles look fishy, we require the new member to certify their graduate level education.
Finally, I would say that what makes our site more credible than our competition is that we are the only site that requires its members to certify that the therapy they provide accords in orientation and attitude to our philosophy as defined in the Elements of Good Therapy document. Sure, this does not guarantee that every therapist listed truly works in a healthy, collaborative, and nonpathologizing way, but it comes closer to the ideal than any other directory. We put more work into supporting healthy psychotherapy than any other directory. We believe that given a choice between GoodTherapy (a directory of empowering and collaborative therapists) and any other directory where you don’t know what kind of therapist you’ll get, consumers will choose us every time.
Open to everyone’s thoughts. Feel free to comment by clicking here. Noah :)
© Copyright 2007 by http://www.GoodTherapy.org Therapist St. Louis Bureau - All Rights Reserved.
4 comments so far
Hi, I thought I would add a few things to the post I made above:
I very much know about the dangers of incompetent therapists and the damage they can inflict. In fact, I just started with a new client who, in her 4th session, admitted she was afraid to go near vulnerable feelings because I might try to be sexual with her as her last therapist did! So not only does she have years of abuse to heal, she also has to deal with how her last therapist rewounded her.
So, one of my points is that licensed therapists can also be careless, unconscious, incompotent, and harmful. It would be categorical and false to say all licensed therapists are good and all unlicensed therapists are bad. There are many unlicensed therapists who have been around before I was born and who just never followed the new standardized course toward licensure.
Because bad therapists can be both licensed and unlicensed, we at GoodTherapy.org do our best to inform consumers about the Code of Ethics, what good therapy consists of, and what the warning signs of bad therapy are.
Finally, I want to assure you that we ask new members to specify their licensure status, license type and to provide their license number. And whatever information is entered is displayed in listings.
Noah :)
I understand the reasons you describe for not asking for licensure and understand your good intentions. Nevertheless, the word “therapy” is synonymous with “treatment.” I’d suggest you take this into consideration. I would have loved to link my practice, and have links to Psychology Today and Medem (they do have licensure requirements). You need to take into consideration many of your website viewers will assume those with links have a certain accreditation. You may want to post a disclaimer stating: “AT YOUR OWN RISK.”
Hi Gabriela, This goes without saying. We absolutely inform users in our Terms and Conditions which are required to search our directory. Btw, you’re wrong about psych today. The do allow pre-licensed and non-licensed folks in their directory. Yes, they verify licensure for those practitioners who claim they are licensed, but they don’t require it. The offer stands should you reconsider, Noah
I applaud your decision to include both licensed and non-licensed professionals. There is absolutely no guarantee that a licensed health care provider will be “safer” than a non-licensed provider. I’ve seen and heard many licensed therapists over the years say and do things that have caused harm (e.g., purposely creating client dependence in order to fill their own personal voids). All practitioners of these healing arts deserve ample opportunity to showcase what they can offer. Consumers must do their homework, both for licensed and non-licensed practitioners.
Since when did having a license mean that a practitioner is “safe’? Weren’t there any good practitioners before the advent of licensure? I believe that the governing body of a profession should be a board from within that profession that provides certification, not the government with their state licenses. Consumers must take more responsibility in determining who is best to fit their needs, licensed or unlicensed. That goes for mental health practioners and physical health practitioners.
Randy Yniguez, LMHC, RN