Child, Teen, and Family Counselling & Psychotherapy

How do I book appointments?

Any of the hyperlinks throughout the page will work but if you are more a traditionalist you can email us at [email protected] to secure times for a 15min Initial Consultation to book our first session or ask questions about who I am and what you hope to accomplish in counselling or therapy.  Services are usually booked through a third-party booking / payment service called Jane App.  You will be set up in this system to access everything you need including virtual session links and scheduling availability.

Do you offer walk-in or same day appointments?

Unfortunately, due to the logistics, a same day appointment is very difficult to accommodate.  Appointments need to be planned in advance and based on schedule availability.

Do you offer in-person or virtual counselling?

We offer all modalities to better connect with you.  Most contact availabilities are telephone and video and in-person appointments are near the Burlington / Oakville borders in a medical art building off Hwy 403.  You can choose whatever modality works for you or even any combination.

Is there homework?  

Counselling is hard work and the sessional time is reserved for information gather and sharing.  It’s also a place where you learn and apply best ways to problem solve solutions.  Often times you will receive homework from the therapist in the form of assessment tools, psycho-education (i.e. videos), counselling related workbooks (i.e. sleep journal), sessional summaries etc.   This email will be from:  [email protected].  This means that you are not able to reply back.  This avoids back and forth communication between the therapist and client so that you can focus on the work.  The booked sessional appointment is the time to review the homework and discuss what worked and what didn’t and not on helping you do the homework or adding new dimensions of the problem you might be facing.

Are your services covered by insurance?

Yes! While our services are covered by most extended health coverage plans/benefit plans.

We recommend that you connect with your insurance provider to confirm that a registered master-level social worker can be covered under your plan. 

We do not need referrals from doctors, other health professionals, or your insurance provider to access services.   There is no need to bring your OHIP health card or any other documents. However, if you have medical records such as doctors note, discharge summary, or information about prescription medications, that will be helpful so that a more coordinated approach can be delivered.

Please be informed that our services are not covered by OHIP/health card and that Pivot Counselling do not provide any assessment reporting to any third party (i.e. lawyers).

Do you have direct billing?

That depends on your insurance provider.  Unfortunately, the trend has been that services are paid at the beginning of the session and a receipt is sent to you for you to get reimbursed by your insurance provider.

Which insurance providers do you bill directly with?

Pivot Counselling is working hard to ensure that direct billing arrangements are secured with:

1. Alberta Blue Cross
2. BPA
3. Canada Life
4. Canadian Construction Workers Union (CCWU)
5. Chambers of Commerce (Johnston Group)
6. CINUP (Johnston Group)
7. Coughlin & Associates LTD
8. D.A. Townley
9. Equitable Life 
10. First Canadian (Johnston Group)
11. Green Shields Canada
12. Industrial Alliance
13. Johnston Group
14. La Capitale/Beneva 
15. LiUNA Local 183
16. LiUNA Local 506 
17. Maximum Benefit (Johnston Group)
18. Medavie Blue Cross
19. MÉDIC Construction (Green Shield Canada)
20. People Corporation
21. RWAM
22. SSQ Insurance 
23. Telus AdjudiCare 
24. Union Benefits
25. UW Insurance

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list. If you have benefits / coverage with another provider please let us know.  

Please note that the development between Pivot Counseling and the health insurance company takes time and may change over time.  Our goal is to ensure the maximum amount of convenience between your counselling needs and your benefit plan.

Do you accept OHIP/Health Card?

Social Work Counselling and Psychotherapy is not covered by OHIP/ Health Card at this time by the province of Ontario.   In most cases, your insurance provider will cover social work counselling/psychotherapy services.   If you do not have insurance, will provide you with a receipt that can be used as a so you can claim it as a non-refundable tax credit when you file your income tax.  We strongly recommend that you research your benefits/insurance options to ensure that you receive coverage from a registered social worker.