Check a practitioner, including one of our own
You are looking for someone to accompany you. Here are the questions to ask before you commit. They apply to any professional, member of CARPEA or not, and a serious practitioner will never be uneasy about being asked them.
The ten questions to ask
- What training did you follow, where, over how many hours?A precise, verifiable answer. "I trained with several masters" is not one.
- What title do you hold exactly, and who awards it?Some titles are protected by law, most are not. Ask which, and who awarded it.
- Are you supervised? How often, and by whom?A professional supervised by no one works alone with their blind spots.
- Do you carry professional liability insurance?The certificate should be available to you on simple request.
- Which code of ethics are you bound by, and where can I read it?A code without an accessible complaints procedure commits to nothing.
- What happens if I am not satisfied? Who can I turn to?The answer must exist before the problem arises.
- What you offer, what does it make possible, and what does it not?A serious professional can say what their practice does not do.
- Is what you use supported by evidence? What is known, what is not?"It is scientifically proven", with nothing more, is a signal in itself.
- How many sessions, at what price, and under what commitment?The practical terms must be written down before you start, not discovered along the way.
- What do you do if my situation goes beyond your scope?The right answer is: I refer you to a healthcare professional.
Six signals that should raise the alarm
A promise of cure
No practitioner is permitted to claim that they treat, cure or heal an illness, disorder or symptom. Presenting a practice as treating an illness may amount to the unlawful practice of medicine.
Pressure on your care
No one may encourage you to stop a medical treatment, take the place of your care, or make their accompaniment conditional on breaking off that care. The law punishes incitement to abandon care.
A breaking of your ties
An accompaniment that draws you away from those close to you, demands a heavy and immediate financial commitment, or makes its effectiveness depend on your faith in the method.
A cultivated haze around the title
A presentation that leads you to believe in the standing of a psychologist or psychotherapist without meeting the legal conditions, including through the layout of a business card or a web page.
No limit ever mentioned
A professional who never refers anyone is not highly competent: this is someone who does not see what they should see. Being able to say "this is no longer mine to handle" is a competence, not an admission.
An unverifiable seal
Many "international" logos are obtained by simple subscription, without verification or renewal. Always ask what the seal required of its holder, including ours.
If you have grounds for complaint against a member
Our procedure is accessible without login and free of charge. It unfolds in five stages.
- Direct resolution, where possibleMany situations are settled through a conversation. We support you in this if you wish, without obliging you to.
- Written reportYou set out the facts. We acknowledge receipt and tell you the next steps within a set time.
- Adversarial investigationA panel of three is formed, two of them from outside the steering committee. The person concerned is informed, receives the material, and has a period in which to respond.
- Reasoned decisionFrom a recommendation to exclusion, according to the seriousness. The aim is first of all restorative, except for serious breaches.
- Written notification to both partiesWith the reasons. Each year we publish the number of reports received and their outcomes, in aggregated and anonymised form.
What we cannot do
We can neither bar someone from practising, nor order a refund, nor impose a criminal penalty. Our decisions bear on membership of CARPEA.
For a financial or contractual dispute, the route is that of consumer mediation, distinct from the ethics procedure.
For facts that may constitute an offence, the route is that of filing a complaint with the authorities. Both routes can be pursued in parallel with our procedure.