We provide consultation, assessment, and treatment services to children, adolescents, adults, and families. Treatment services include individual, joint (child-parent), parent, and family sessions.
We charge $225 per 1-hour session for all services with a registered psychologist. This rate is based on the recommended rate set by the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) in 2013. The first 50 minutes of each 60-minute session will be spent directly with clients, and the remaining 10 minutes will be spent on documentation activities. When applicable, our rates for services with clinicians in training or in Supervised Practice range from $100 to $200 per 1-hour session.
Please check with your insurance provider. Many insurance providers offer coverage for services provided by a registered psychologist. The annual amount of coverage varies across plans. Be sure to discuss this with your psychologist to develop a service plan. A receipt will be provided for all services and can be used to submit to your insurance provider for reimbursement if your plan covers for psychological services. We do not directly bill extended health companies. Please note that psychological services can be used as tax-deductible medical expenses.
If you need to reschedule or cancel your appointment, please let us know at least 48 hours in advance to avoid a cancellation fee, which is the full session fee. In-person appointments can be switched to virtual sessions as needed. You can use the secure messaging feature on the OWL client portal or email your psychologist or clinician directly.
Our clinic is located at Unit 5-320 Ferndale Avenue in London, Ontario. We are situated in a commercial plaza located in the Cleardale neighbourhood. There is ample free parking onsite. Our clinic is fully accessible.
All video appointments with psychologists/clinicians at Connected Hands will use a secure video platform in compliance with The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). Prior to starting a video session, your psychologist/clinician will discuss with you the steps to take in the event of experiencing technical difficulties, and in the event of a crisis. It is important that you have the appropriate equipment for video sessions: A fully charged device (computer, tablet, or smartphone) with a working microphone and camera, and a strong Wi-Fi connection that is password protected. You are responsible for securing your computer hardware, internet access points, and password security. It is also important that you are situated in a private space free of distractions. It is agreed that neither your psychologist/clinician nor you will record any session without permission from the other individual. At any time, your psychologist/clinician may determine that due to certain circumstances, virtual sessions (video or phone) are no longer appropriate and in-person sessions are needed. Your psychologist/clinician is not liable for confidentiality breaches that are caused by client error or client equipment failure.
At Connected Hands, we are committed to providing a scent-free environment for our clients. We realize that scents can trigger headaches/migraines or cause other health problems. We also recognize that many children have sensory processing challenges. We ask that all clients and accompanying individuals refrain from wearing perfumes or other products that contain scents when attending in-person sessions.
Please complete the service inquiry form located on our website and you will be contacted to schedule an initial free 15-minute phone consultation where we can learn more about your concerns and what you are hoping to achieve. This consultation is also an opportunity for you to ask any questions you may have. If we are a good fit, you will be placed on our formal waitlist and given an estimate of your wait time. When we are ready to see you, you will be contacted to schedule the first session and may be asked to complete intake and consent forms before your session.
Please contact us for current wait times for assessment, treatment, and consultation services.
All assessment waitlists are currently closed for external referrals (child, adolescent, and adult). The wait list for adult therapy and consultation services is also closed.
- Therapy for Children
The first session of therapy services for children would involve an intake session with parent(s)/legal guardian(s) (and the child depending on age) where we sign all the necessary forms, discuss your concerns further, and gather historical information that is relevant to the child’s treatment. This initial session may be with the child or with parent(s)/legal guardian(s) only. We may then book a next session where we will meet individually with the child. The initial intake session is typically 75 minutes, and subsequent individual or joint child-parent therapy sessions are 50 minutes.
- Therapy for Youth
The first session of therapy services for adolescents would typically involve an intake session where we sign all the necessary forms, discuss your concerns further, and gather historical information that is relevant to the youth’s treatment. This session involves the parent(s)/legal guardian(s) and the youth. We will likely have some one-on-one time with the youth within the first session to start building a relationship and help them to feel safe and comfortable. We will then book a session to meet individually with the youth. The initial intake session is typically 75 minutes, and subsequent individual or joint youth-parent therapy sessions are 50 minutes.
- Therapy for Adults
The first session for adult counselling and therapy services would involve going over informed consent together, signing the necessary consent forms, discussing your concerns further, and developing treatment goals for moving forward. The intake session is typically 75 minutes in length. Subsequent therapy sessions are typically 50 minutes.
- Family Therapy
The first session of family counselling and therapy services would involve an intake session where we sign all the necessary forms, discuss your concerns further, and gather historical information that is relevant to your family’s treatment. This session is for parent(s)/legal guardian(s) only when the family therapy involves children but typically involves the entire family for youth or adult children. We will discuss our recommendations around who in the family would be included in this intake session during our free initial consultation. The intake session is typically 75 minutes. The length of subsequent family sessions will vary depending on identified goals (50 to 75 minutes).
- Assessment
The first session for assessment services would typically involve an intake meeting with the adult client or a parent(s)/legal guardian(s) and child (depending on age), where we would sign all the necessary forms and go over the client’s developmental, medical, educational, and social/emotional history to inform the assessment. This initial intake session is 90 to 120 minutes in length. We would then book the remaining sessions including interviews with the adult/youth/child, any standardized assessment administration with the adult/youth/child, and plans for sending questionnaires to parent(s)/legal guardian(s), the adult/youth/child, and teachers (if relevant).
- Consultation
The first session for consultation services would involve an initial intake session where we sign all the necessary forms, discuss your concerns further, and gather relevant historical information. This session is for parent(s)/legal guardian(s) only when the client is a child but may also involve the youth.
Several relevant legislations in Ontario inform how psychologists legally obtain consent for service. Psychologists and student clinicians at Connected Hands follow the Health Care Consent Act (HCCA), which states that the “capable” individual, regardless of their chronological age, can legally provide consent. HCAA also states that the health practitioner should assume that the person is capable of consenting on their behalf unless there are reasonable grounds to believe otherwise.
Therefore, when obtaining consent from individuals 16 years or older, we will assume that they have capacity unless there is information available to suggest otherwise (e.g., intellectual disability or severe emotional distress, or brain injury that is impacting the ability to process information).
When working with youth who may have the capacity to provide consent, your psychologist/student clinician will assess their understanding of the nature of the treatment, the expected benefits and risks of the treatment, alternative courses of action, and the likely consequences of not having the treatment. When a capable youth provides consent, parent(s)/legal guardian(s) will also be asked to provide a signature indicating their understanding of the risks and benefits of treatment for the child/youth, limits of privacy and confidentiality, and the fees associated with services provided to the child/youth.
When the child or youth is deemed incapable of providing consent, the capable legal guardian (i.e., custodial parent, Children’s Aid Society representative, or another person who is lawfully entitled to give/refuse consent on behalf of the parent) provides consent.
According to the Children’s Law Reform Act, when parents are separated or divorced, and custody is joint, or when there is no formal agreement and the child resides with both parents equally, either capable parent may provide consent. In sole custody cases or where there is no formal agreement and the child resides with one parent, the parent who has sole custody or cares for the child can provide consent.
When obtaining consent to release or obtain information, the capable youth or the parent(s)/legal guardian(s) who signed the consent for service will provide consent.
- Therapy
It is often helpful to explain therapy to children and youth as having someone to talk to who will focus on them and can help with their feelings. It helps some children to better understand by using the metaphor that a psychologist is a “Feelings Doctor” who helps with how we think and feel similar to how a medical doctor treats a broken leg. It can also be helpful to explain that we have lots of things in the office to help them feel more comfortable, including toys, fidgets, and art supplies, and it is ok if they don’t feel comfortable talking right away. You can let them know that it is normal to be nervous.
- Assessment
We often talk to children and youth about how an assessment helps us better understand how their brains work, what things they are good at, and how to help them with some of the things they may be struggling with. You can explain how there will be a bunch of different things during the process, which will include some conversation, some tasks like puzzles and questions, and academic tasks like reading, writing, and math. They are just asked to try their best as some things may be easy for them, some may be just right, and some may be hard. You can help by letting them know that it is ok to be nervous.
To establish a trusting therapeutic relationship with the child or youth, some level of privacy is typically needed to cultivate a sense of emotional safety so that challenging issues can be explored and addressed. We also believe that therapy is most effective when there is active involvement and participation from the parent or legal guardian so that the child or youth has support in the home environment to practice strategies learned in the session. Therefore, at Connected Hands, we are committed to providing children or youth with some privacy so that they can openly discuss their concerns AND we also involve parents/legal guardians in the therapeutic process by seeking feedback and providing regular updates. At times, the parent/legal guardian may even participate in sessions. However, we will not provide detailed information regarding what the child or youth shared unless they provide assent/consent or is within the limits of confidentiality. Instead, parents/legal guardians will be provided information regarding general themes, ideas, and recommended strategies, as well as caregiving support.
If you are a prospective client, fill out the secure service inquiry form located on our website to request a free initial 15-minute consultation.
After your initial consultation, you will be contacted to schedule the intake session. Following the intake session, your clinician will work with you to determine how future sessions will be booked. Some clinicians at Connected Hands offer online booking through the OWL client portal.
Connected Hands generally operates during regular business hours and does not provide emergency or crisis support. In the event of an emergency or crisis such as a significant risk of serious bodily harm to self or others and/or other personal and psychiatric emergencies, please go to the emergency department of your nearby hospital, for those under 16 contact Tandem at 519-433-0334, for those 16+ contact Support Line at 519-601-8055 or toll free at 1-844-360-8055 or, if the situation warrants, call 911.
Privacy of personal information is an important principle at Connected Hands: Centre for Psychological Wellbeing. We are committed to collecting, using and disclosing personal information responsibly and only to the extent necessary for the services we provide. We try to be open and transparent about how we handle personal information. Read our full privacy policy here.