Appointment and Intake Process

After you submit a request to book an appointment, a member of our Client Services team will contact you for a brief intake. In order to match you with a counsellor or therapist best suited to help you, we’ll ask for the following:

• Basic contact information
• Brief description of your concern(s)
• Your availability

If you have access to Extended Health benefits and would like to use it, please let us know during the intake. This will allow us to match you with a credentialled therapist who meets your plan’s requirements.

We match clients to therapists based on the following:

1. Areas of specialization. Our diverse team of professionally trained therapists and counsellors have different areas of specialization. 
2. Availability. We try our best to match you with a therapist whose schedule aligns with your availability.
3. Third-party coverage or financial concerns. If you would like to use third-party coverage (or Extended Health benefits), we match you with a credentialled therapist who meets your plan’s requirements. If you are experiencing financial hardships, we may suggest matching you with our ACTS student intern counsellor for more affordable sessions. 

No worries! We understand that sometimes people just don’t “click” and that’s OK. If you’d like to change therapists at any time, for any reason, please email bookings@counsellinggroup.org and a member of our Client Services team will be happy to assist you.

It depends. Prior to contacting us, please check the following with your plan provider:

• What credentials does your counsellor or therapist need to have in order for you to receive coverage? E.g. Registered Psychologist, Registered Social Worker, or Registered Clinical Counsellor.)
• What’s the extent of your plan’s coverage? Benefit plans usually list a maximum dollar amount per year along with a maximum dollar amount or percentage covered per session. 

Having this information prior to the intake will allow us to match you with the appropriate therapist and make the process as timely as possible.

We’re always happy to collaborate with you and third-party funders. If your counselling fees are covered by parties other than your Extended Health benefits such as WorkSafeBC, ICBC, Healthcare Benefit Trust, your employer, or other supporting organizations, Burnaby Counselling Group requires a contract from your provider prior to scheduling your first appointment.

Your contract should include the following information:

• Client’s first and last name
• Organization name (billable to)
• Contact name and number (person responsible for the contract)
• Billing amount and number of sessions (e.g. $140/hour for 4 sessions)
• Name of counsellor or therapist and credentials