Corporation Professionnelle des Travailleurs Sociaux du Quebec
5757 Decelles Ave., Ch. 335
Montreal, QC H3S 2C3
(for social work counselors)
Ask for a list that shows their specialties. If none is available, ask for the address of the branch office nearest you, which you then can contact for this information. If writing by mail, be sure to enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope to ensure a response.
BY TELEPHONE
A second way to locate a therapist with specialization in a particular area is through careful use of your telephone directory. This may take you some time, and also some preliminary calls, but it can give you a good deal of information:
Psychiatrists
Psychiatrists are listed in the Yellow Pages under "Physicians and Surgeons." In larger metropolitan directories, you will usually find separate headings after the general listing, according to specialties. Look there for "Physicians-Psychiatrists" or similar heading. Many psychiatrists today will list their special focus there—for example, psychoanalysis, psychoanalytic psychotherapy (brief analysis), marriage and family therapy, hypnosis, chemical dependency treatment, child and adolescent therapy. If you want to see a psychiatrist and do not find one who indicates the specialized approach you want to try, then you will need to make some calls. Most psychiatrists' secretaries or receptionists are happy to tell you what the doctor specializes in. If the list of his or her areas of specialization is impressively and overly long, perhaps it is best to look elsewhere for a more realistic professional.
If, after locating a psychiatrist with the background you are looking for, you want to double-check his or her credentials, ask the secretary if the psychiatrist is a member of the American Psychiatric Association (or, if in Canada, the Canadian Psychiatric Association), whether he or she completed a program of study at an institute of psychotherapy or psychoanalysis, and whether he or she is board certified. (Remember, any M.D. can call himself or herself a psychiatrist, but not all have the full qualifications of a certified psychiatrist.)
Clinical Psychologists
Clinical psychologists are listed in the Yellow Pages under "Psychologists." Their specialties are often identified—e.g., marriage and family therapy, group therapy, bereavement, alcoholism, eating disorders and addiction, psychological assessment (testing), learning disorders, sexual dysfunction, depression, panic syndrome. Again, if the list below a given psychologist's name is unreasonably long, you may have come across either a genius or someone who favors advertising. Psychologists less often mention the particular approach to therapy they use, but some do; for example, behavior therapy, Gestalt, hypnosis, or "analytical approach" may be listed. Again, it will probably be necessary to make a few telephone calls.