Master level clinician vs Psychotherapist ( Differences)

In this article, we will discuss the differences between a master level clinician vs psychotherapist. 

There is great confusion and uncertainty among people about the clear delimitation between the profession of a clinical psychologist and that of a psychotherapist. Not infrequently, people end up in the office of a specialist on the recommendations of friends, acquaintances or advertisements on the Internet, without knowing if their problem requires working with a clinical psychologist, after psychotherapy sessions.

When do you call in a clinical psychologist and when in a psychotherapist?

I will try to answer you as concisely as possible in the material below, emphasizing the role and way of working of each specialist, but also the training you have to go through for each specialization.

The role of a Master level clinician 

The role of the clinical psychologist is to investigate, test and diagnose. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Psychology, specializing in the assessment and psychodiagnostic of mental problems, assessing the mental health of different categories of people, but also short interventions focused on specific problems.

Because the field of psychology is vast, it would be impossible for a person to have skills in all areas covered by psychology after graduation. Therefore, after college, the psychologist may opt for additional training programs.

When do you go to a clinical psychologist?

If you are experiencing severe clinical symptoms that affect your functioning in society, in your family or at work, you should take the first step to the clinical psychologist. He/she will test, evaluate and diagnose the problem and possibly determine the causes that cause the problems in your life. 

At the same time, he will be able to direct you, as a patient, to other medical investigations, such as neurological, psychiatric or other.

The clinical psychologist also has the role of supporting the psychiatrist in choosing the right treatment because, by the nature of his activity, he allocates more time than this, for a more careful and detailed diagnosis.

The relationship of the clinical psychologist with you will be one of evaluation. As a patient, you turn to a clinical psychologist because he has the necessary training and tools (scientifically validated tests) to assess conditions and dysfunctions, and will advise you on the treatment to be followed.

It is very important to answer honestly the tests that will be applied to you, to be able to be open when you are asked questions. Sometimes the evaluation will be done in a single meeting, other times several meetings and evaluations will be needed on different days. Of course, depending on the intensity of the problems, and your needs.

Rapid, timely measures will be taken to alleviate your annoying symptoms, at least to the extent that they become bearable and accessible to manage. Only after your urgent problems will be solved with the necessary short-term solutions, you will be able to move on to the next step – looking for long-term solutions with the support of a psychotherapist.

Psychotherapist

Being a psychotherapist requires a completely different profession. Even if today, in many countries, the psychotherapist is assimilated somewhat artificially in a professional association of psychologists, his training (another 3-4-5 years, after graduation) and the way of working differs radically from that of the clinical psychologist.

The psychotherapist can be a graduate of a faculty with a profile other than psychology! Such as medicine, social work, special pedagogy, or even theology! Important is the competence to communicate, relate, and guide the client to concrete results and to find suitable solutions. Or developing the client’s ability to build their own solutions. Personalized, individual solutions that only suit him!

The psychotherapist is rarely very concerned with the precise diagnosis of the client (here we are already talking about the client, not the patient).

In psychotherapy, the therapeutic relationship, the way of communication, the support offered to the client and his guidance towards regaining functionality are important. Regardless of the known or hidden labels, conditions or dysfunctions that the client carries out consciously or subconsciously.

The relationship between the psychotherapist and the client is equality, mutual respect, and will be neutral, non-directive. The professional psychotherapist does not give advice, directions or indications to the client, but only helps him to see more clearly the objective reality and to identify his blockages or dysfunctional, self-sabotaging or limiting beliefs. 

Thus, the client will be guided and encouraged to observe things more closely and to be able to make the right decisions for the situation in which he is.

The right chemistry between the client and the psychotherapist is essential and goes so far as to break the therapeutic relationship when there are such incompatibilities. The therapeutic relationship is gradually built over several sessions, from four upwards, and cemented along the way. 

The psychotherapist understands the client, uses empathy, puts himself in his shoes, in his situation, and somehow evaluates the situation from the inside. So in a few sessions, he gets to know his client better than he knows himself! Hence the maximum importance that it is good to give for choosing a therapist according to our own personality.

Especially relevant is the ability to resonate with the client and to succeed in involving him in his own self-healing process. If there are mutual trust and openness, the best solutions appear and the results are often amazing!

Psychotherapists can be of different types. For example, gender therapist and behavioral therapist.

When do you go to a psychotherapist?

If the intensity of the symptoms is (apparently) lower, you can keep them somewhat under control, continue to function acceptably and successfully cope with the demands of the workplace, family or society, but the level of satisfaction, fulfilment, inner peace, self-control of emotions leaves much to be desired, the psychotherapist is the right solution.

Also, if you are at a time when you feel that you have to make certain changes, but you do not know exactly what they would be when you feel that you simply need a new approach in your life (eg family problems or couple, self-discomfort, organizational group problems, etc.) or you encounter any other emotional challenges that do not target the clinical side, then a psychotherapist can help you. 

He will guide your steps towards those changes that will allow you to live a more balanced life and improve your quality of life.

The process will be slow, lengthy, and will take place gradually, in one, maximum of two sessions per week, for 3-6 months, or even longer. During this time, you will learn about yourself. 

You will develop your emotional intelligence and ability to successfully manage situations with high levels of discomfort or stress. You will also acquire practical methods needed to increase self-control and functionality.

You need to pay maximum attention to psychotherapy sessions and resonate with the psychotherapist as a level of culture, intelligence, training and effective relationships. These aspects will often play the most important role in your recovery.

What are the costs?

The master level clinician, especially in case of emergencies, in hospitals, offers free services. At the private office, the costs are affordable, given the small number of meetings.

In the first session, the clinical anamnesis and the battery of tests suitable for the symptoms are established.

The psychotherapist being private, carries out his activity independently, in his own office. His rates will be higher because the costs of training a professional psychotherapist are very high. 

After completing his university studies, which are sometimes free, the psychotherapist enters a rather expensive process of continuous training, throughout his professional life. This will also be reflected in the cost of the meetings.

 And if we take into account the relatively large number of sessions, extended over longer periods, rarely less than 4-6-8 sessions, we understand the reasons why psychotherapy seems to be, at first glance, in terms of prices, more expensive. 

But it is worth keeping in mind that a psychotherapy session sometimes costs less than a beauty time session, which lasts a maximum of 2-3 days. In addition, the effects of psychotherapy sessions remain active for the client’s entire life!

Therefore, the seemingly high costs in the short term are insignificant in the long run. Because they are found in your inner balance, happiness and well-being. 

In other words, investing in a genuine process of change, of personal development, is the best possible investment in anyone’s life! The only investment that sometimes provides interest tens of times higher than the initial investment!

FAQ about Master level clinician

Conclusions

In this article, we will discuss the differences between a master level clinician vs psychotherapist. 

There is great confusion and uncertainty among people about the clear delimitation between the profession of a clinical psychologist and that of a psychotherapist.  

The role of the clinical psychologist is to investigate, test and diagnose. He is a graduate of the Faculty of Psychology, specializing in the assessment and psychodiagnostic of mental problems, assessing the mental health of different categories of people, but also short interventions focused on specific problems.

Being a psychotherapist requires a completely different profession. Even if today, in many countries, the psychotherapist is assimilated somewhat artificially in a professional association of psychologists, his training (another 3-4-5 years, after graduation) and the way of working differs radically from that of the clinical psychologist.

If you have any questions or comments, please let us know!

References

Apa.org

Goodtheraphy.org

Betterhelp.com