Consulting (Professional to Professional)

Mental health consultation is a collaborative relationship between professionals. The consultant is a specialist and the consultee invokes the consultant’s support in addressing professional mental health related issues and/or focuses on the mastery and integration of specialized mental health training or knowledge. In this type of consultation, the professional responsibility for the patient remains entirely with the consultee. Consultation is expected to be consultee-centered which means the focus is on the skills and knowledge of the consultee. Consultation is structured in format and consultees provide examples of their professional work as part of the consultation process. The consultant values the integrity and independence of the consultee. The consultant and consultee are expected to operate within the ethical standards and scope of practice of their respective professional licenses. The consultee maintains full responsibility and autonomy for the decisions involving their clients’ treatment.

Note: Consultation is not equivalent to clinical supervision, and consultation is not equivalent to provision of psychotherapy services, which poses an ethical issue of dual relationship.