Medically reviewed by Jacque Lovely, RN MN MBA PMP Reg# 74334 | Head of Western Operations at ATMA CENA
ATMA CENA offers three psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) training pathways: Prescriber, Clinical, and Integrative. The right one for you is determined by your profession and your provincial scope of practice — not by preference. This guide helps you self-select based on what your licence authorizes and the role you intend to play on a PAT team.
Key takeaways
- Start with your profession. Physicians and nurse practitioners with prescribing authority map to the Prescriber Pathway. Psychotherapists, psychologists, and counsellors with a psychotherapy or psychosocial-intervention scope map to the Clinical Pathway. Integration-only and allied-wellness roles map to the Integrative Pathway.
- All three pathways begin with the same Foundations course, then split into a pathway-specific advanced course.
- Only prescribers can prescribe or apply through SAP. Non-prescribing clinicians deliver the psychotherapy parts of PAT within a physician-led team — they cannot prescribe, administer, or submit Health Canada Special Access Program applications.
- Province changes the answer. In Alberta, providers of psychedelic treatment services are restricted to members of six named regulated colleges, so unregulated counselling therapists are out of scope.
- You can stack pathways. Foundations transfers across all three, so a physician can add Clinical content and a psychotherapist can add Integrative content.
Not sure which pathway fits your licence? Book a free information call and an advisor will map your profession and provincial scope to the right starting point.
Start Here: Choose Your Pathway by Profession
Pathway choice follows your credential. If you hold independent prescribing authority — physician or nurse practitioner — the Prescriber Pathway is your primary route. If you are a licensed psychotherapist, psychologist, or counsellor whose scope includes psychotherapy or psychosocial intervention, the Clinical Pathway is your primary route. If your role is integration-only, or you are an allied-wellness practitioner without a clinical scope for the controlled act of psychotherapy, the Integrative Pathway is your route.
The reason profession comes first is regulatory. Canadian PAT runs on two legal tracks: Health Canada’s Special Access Program for psilocybin and MDMA, and provincial off-label rules for ketamine. Both tracks reserve prescribing and substance handling to authorized prescribers, and both expect the psychotherapy to be delivered by clinicians licensed to provide it. Your training pathway should match the role those rules let you occupy.
The Three Pathways at a Glance
Each pathway pairs the Foundations course with one advanced course. The table below summarizes who each pathway is for, the courses it includes, and the role it prepares you for.
| Prescriber Pathway | Clinical Pathway | Integrative Pathway | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary audience | Physicians (MDs), nurse practitioners | Psychotherapists, psychologists, counsellors, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses | Integration-only clinicians; allied-wellness practitioners |
| Advanced course | Prescribing & Oversight in PAT | Applied Clinical Practice in Psychedelic Therapy | Advanced Safety & Support Practices in PAT |
| Advanced course hours | 40 hrs | 46 hrs | 38 hrs |
| Advanced course CE credits | 40 | 46 | 38 |
| Advanced course tuition | $4,000 | $4,200 | $3,500 |
| Supervised Learning Lab | No | Yes — 8 hrs / $1,000 | No |
| Bundle price (10% off) | $4,320 | $5,400 | $3,870 |
| Prerequisite | Foundations (14 hrs / $800 / 14 CE credits) | Foundations (14 hrs / $800 / 14 CE credits) | Foundations (14 hrs / $800 / 14 CE credits) |
| Can prescribe / submit SAP? | Yes (within provincial scope) | No | No |
| Delivers preparation, dosing-day support, integration? | Medical oversight and prescribing role | Yes, within a physician-led team | Preparation and integration support; not dosing-day |
| Optional add-on | KAT Immersive (3 days / $2,400, Calgary, pending CE approval) | KAT Immersive (3 days / $2,400, Calgary, pending CE approval) | None |
Map Your Credential to a Pathway
Find your profession below, confirm the scope note, and follow the primary pathway.
| Your profession | Primary pathway | Secondary / when it applies |
|---|---|---|
| Physician (MD), psychiatrist or family physician | Prescriber | Clinical, if you also intend to deliver psychotherapy yourself |
| Nurse practitioner (with controlled-substance prescribing authority) | Prescriber | — |
| Registered Psychotherapist (Ontario, CRPO) | Clinical | Integrative, for integration-only practice |
| Psychothérapeute (Quebec, OPQ permit) | Clinical | Integrative, for integration-only practice |
| Registered Psychologist | Clinical | Integrative, for assessment- or integration-only roles |
| Counsellor with a regulated psychosocial-intervention scope | Clinical (confirm provincial scope) | Integrative, for integration-only roles |
| Registered / clinical social worker | Clinical | Integrative, for integration-only roles |
| Registered psychiatric nurse | Clinical | — |
| Allied-wellness practitioner without a clinical psychotherapy scope | Integrative | — |
Two patterns are worth naming. First, physicians and nurse practitioners are the only professions whose primary route is the Prescriber Pathway, because prescribing and SAP authorship are reserved to them. Second, the Integrative Pathway appears as a secondary route for several regulated professions because integration-only practice is a legitimate, narrower role — for example, a psychologist who refers clients out for dosing and provides only post-experience integration.
For role-specific detail, see the profession guides: training for physicians, for psychotherapists, for counsellors, and for psychologists.
The Prescriber Pathway: For Physicians and Nurse Practitioners
The Prescriber Pathway is the route for clinicians who hold independent prescribing authority. It prepares you to prescribe ketamine off-label, author Special Access Program applications for psilocybin or MDMA, and provide medical oversight during dosing.
What it includes: Foundations (14 hrs, $800) + Prescribing & Oversight in PAT (40 hrs, $4,000). Bundle price: $4,320. The optional KAT Immersive Experience ($2,400, Calgary, pending CE approval) is available as an in-person practicum add-on.
Prescribing authority is the defining feature here. Only physicians and nurse practitioners with controlled-substance prescribing authority can write a ketamine prescription or submit a SAP request on a patient’s behalf. The Prescribing & Oversight course covers ketamine pharmacology and dosing, route-specific protocols, cardiovascular and neurological screening, SAP application authorship, multidisciplinary-team leadership, and provincial regulatory compliance.
The pharmacological rationale is well established. A systematic review describes ketamine’s rapid antidepressant action through NMDA-receptor antagonism, glutamate disinhibition, and downstream BDNF and mTOR signalling (Kang et al., 2022). A community ketamine program in Edmonton reported a 44% response rate among ultra-treatment-resistant patients, most of whom had previously failed multiple antidepressant trials (Chrenek et al., 2023).
Most physician-prescribers work in multidisciplinary teams alongside psychotherapists and psychologists, so the Prescriber Pathway alone is sufficient. Physicians who also intend to deliver the psychotherapy themselves can add Clinical Pathway content.
The Clinical Pathway: For Licensed Psychotherapists, Psychologists, and Counsellors
The Clinical Pathway is the primary route for regulated mental-health clinicians who will deliver the psychotherapy parts of PAT: preparation, dosing-day therapeutic support, and integration.
What it includes: Foundations (14 hrs, $800) + Applied Clinical Practice in Psychedelic Therapy (46 hrs, $4,200) + Supervised Learning Lab (8 hrs, $1,000). Bundle price: $5,400. The optional KAT Immersive Experience ($2,400, Calgary, pending CE approval) is available as an add-on.
This pathway serves Registered Psychotherapists (Ontario), psychothérapeutes (Quebec), Registered Psychologists, clinical social workers, regulated counsellors, and psychiatric nurses. Health Canada’s December 2022 risk-management expectations ask for a minimum of two therapists present during dosing, with at least one licensed to provide psychotherapy by a regulatory body. Clinical Pathway graduates are trained to fill that role.
The evidence supports the therapist’s distinct contribution. A systematic review of psychotherapy components across PAT trials found that preparation, in-session support, and integration are universal features of the work (Cavarra et al., 2022). Phelps’s foundational framework names six core competencies — including empathetic abiding presence and trust enhancement — that are psychotherapy skills rather than medical ones (Phelps, 2017).
The scope line is firm: you cannot prescribe, administer, possess any controlled substance, or submit a SAP application. In Ontario, CRPO is in the process of developing guidance on the legal frameworks for psychedelic-assisted therapy, with no finalized standard as of May 2026 — Ontario psychotherapists work under existing standards and document competency development through training and supervision.
The Integrative Pathway: For Integration-Focused and Allied Roles
The Integrative Pathway is for clinicians whose role is preparation and integration support rather than dosing-day delivery, and for allied-wellness practitioners who do not hold a clinical scope for the controlled act of psychotherapy.
What it includes: Foundations (14 hrs, $800) + Advanced Safety & Support Practices in PAT (38 hrs, $3,500). Bundle price: $3,870.
Integration is a well-defined clinical task — any conscious and informed attempt to facilitate processing the psychedelic experience content in order to implement its relevant outcomes into everyday life (Gorman et al., 2021). The Integrative Pathway builds the literacy and safety-and-support skills for that work, plus psychoeducation and preparation, without the supervised dosing-day component of the Clinical Pathway.
Two groups choose this pathway. The first is regulated clinicians whose intended role is integration-only. The second is allied-wellness practitioners. For this second group, the provincial scope caveat is decisive: in Alberta, the province’s psychedelic treatment services framework restricts providers to members of six named regulated colleges. Integration and preparation support outside the controlled clinical setting may still be within reach, but anyone in an unregulated role should confirm what their provincial framework permits before describing PAT-adjacent services.
How Province Changes the Answer
Your profession sets the pathway; your province can narrow what that pathway lets you do.
Alberta is the most structured. Providers of psychedelic treatment services are restricted to members of six named regulated colleges, and psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy must be delivered in a CPSA-accredited facility under a psychiatrist, or a physician in consultation with a psychiatrist. A family physician on the Prescriber Pathway works in consultation with a psychiatrist in the community PAT context. Regulated therapists on the Clinical Pathway are within scope; unregulated counselling therapists are not.
Ontario has no finalized PAT standard yet. CRPO is in the process of developing guidance, with no comprehensive published standard as of May 2026. Ontario psychotherapists choosing the Clinical Pathway work under existing standards and document their competency development carefully.
Quebec restricts the act of psychotherapy. The act and the title “psychothérapeute” are both reserved, and an OPQ permit is required for non-physician, non-psychologist practitioners delivering psychotherapy. A Quebec clinician confirming Clinical Pathway fit should confirm permit status first.
Pro tip: SAP is the more constrained track regardless of province. The Psychedelic Association of Canada documented approximately half as many SAP approvals year over year as of September 2025. If you want the most immediately accessible PAT context after training, ketamine-assisted therapy is it — no SAP application required.
A Short Decision Flow
Four questions to reach a starting pathway:
- Do you hold independent prescribing authority (MD or NP)? If yes — Prescriber Pathway. You may add Clinical content if you intend to deliver psychotherapy yourself.
- If no, does your regulated scope include the controlled act of psychotherapy or psychosocial intervention? If yes — Clinical Pathway, within a physician-led team.
- Is your intended role integration-only, or are you in an allied-wellness role without a clinical psychotherapy scope? If yes — Integrative Pathway, subject to your provincial scope.
- Does your province narrow the answer? Confirm Alberta’s six-colleges and facility rules, Ontario’s in-development CRPO status, or Quebec’s permit requirement before you enrol.
Every route begins with the Foundations course, so you can take it first and confirm pathway fit afterward. If any step is unclear for your specific credential and province, the program advisor call is the place to resolve it.
What Comes After You Choose?
A pathway is the start of practice, not the end. Trained clinicians move into PAT delivery through clinical-trial sites, SAP-authorized programs led by a prescribing physician, or structured clinic-network models that carry the medical and regulatory infrastructure.
ATMA CENA’s CoCare program is built for the third structure. CoCare lets clinicians who have completed Clinical Pathway training deliver preparation and integration psychotherapy with their own clients while ATMA CENA’s clinical infrastructure handles ketamine prescribing and dosing-day medical supervision. Note: the current per-province CoCare eligibility map by designation is pending confirmation — confirm at intake.
Ready to choose a starting point? Explore ATMA CENA’s three training pathways or book an advisor call to confirm which one fits your credential and province.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which ATMA CENA pathway is right for my profession?
Physicians and nurse practitioners with prescribing authority map to the Prescriber Pathway. Regulated psychotherapists, psychologists, counsellors, clinical social workers, and psychiatric nurses map to the Clinical Pathway. Integration-only clinicians and allied-wellness practitioners without a clinical psychotherapy scope map to the Integrative Pathway. The decision is set by what your licence authorizes on a PAT team, not by preference.
Can I take more than one pathway?
Yes. The Foundations course is the shared entry point for all three pathways. A physician can add Clinical Pathway content to deliver psychotherapy as well as prescribe; a psychotherapist can add Integrative content for integration-focused work.
What is the difference between the Clinical and Integrative pathways?
The Clinical Pathway prepares regulated mental-health clinicians to deliver the full psychotherapy arc of PAT, including dosing-day therapeutic support within a physician-led team, and includes the Supervised Learning Lab. The Integrative Pathway prepares clinicians for integration and preparation support without the supervised dosing-day component. The Integrative Pathway suits integration-only roles and allied-wellness practitioners.
Can a counsellor or allied-wellness practitioner take the Clinical Pathway?
It depends on your provincial scope. Counsellors with a regulated psychosocial-intervention scope can take the Clinical Pathway, provided their province permits a dosing-support role within a physician-led team. In Alberta, providers of psychedelic treatment services are restricted to members of six named regulated colleges, so unregulated counselling therapists should choose the Integrative Pathway.
Do I need to start with the Prescriber Pathway to prescribe?
Yes, if prescribing or SAP authorship is your goal. Only physicians and nurse practitioners with controlled-substance prescribing authority can prescribe ketamine off-label or submit a SAP application. The Clinical and Integrative pathways do not authorize prescribing.
Can I start with Foundations before committing to a pathway?
Yes, and many clinicians do. Foundations (14 hrs, $800, 14 CE credits) is the prerequisite for all three pathways, so completing it first lets you confirm pathway fit before choosing an advanced course.
Does completing a pathway authorize me to administer psilocybin or MDMA?
No. Completion of any training program does not constitute authorization to administer psilocybin or MDMA. Both are accessible only through Health Canada’s Special Access Program, on a case-by-case basis, and a SAP application must be submitted by an authorized prescriber.
How does province affect which pathway I choose?
Profession sets the pathway; province narrows what it lets you do. Alberta restricts providers to six named regulated colleges and requires a CPSA-accredited facility under psychiatrist oversight. Ontario’s CRPO has not finalized a PAT standard as of May 2026. Quebec reserves the act of psychotherapy and requires an OPQ permit for non-physician, non-psychologist practitioners. Confirm your provincial rules before you enrol.
Compliance Disclaimer
Ketamine is approved by Health Canada as an anaesthetic. Use for depression, anxiety, PTSD, and other mental-health indications is off-label, regulated by provincial medical regulators — for example, CPSA in Alberta, CPSM in Manitoba, and CPSO in Ontario.
Psilocybin and MDMA are restricted drugs under Canada’s Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. Patient access to psilocybin- or MDMA-assisted therapy is available only through Health Canada’s Special Access Program (SAP). SAP approval is granted on a case-by-case basis and is not guaranteed. Psilocybin SAP is primarily approved for adults with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder or distress associated with a life-threatening illness. MDMA SAP is primarily approved for adults with PTSD. Completion of any training program does not constitute authorization to administer psilocybin or MDMA — SAP applications must be submitted by an authorized prescriber.
Restricted titles including “Psychologist,” “Registered Psychotherapist” (Ontario), and “psychothérapeute” (Quebec) apply only to clinicians who hold the relevant registration.
This article is educational and is not a clinical recommendation for any individual.
About the Author
Reverdi Darda RN, BScN Reg # 61707 | CEO & Founder, ATMA CENA
Reverdi Darda, RN is CEO & Founder of ATMA CENA and a Registered Nurse with over three decades of experience in healthcare operations, community engagement, policy development, and strategic planning. A recognized leader in mental health access, Reverdi has dedicated her career to advancing evidence-based treatment models and advocating for policy change that prioritizes effective care. She founded ATMA CENA to expand practitioner and public access to psychedelic-assisted therapy across Canada.
Medically reviewed by Jacque Lovely, RN MN MBA PMP Reg# 74334 | Head of Western Operations at ATMA CENA
Sources
- Health Canada (2022). Notice to stakeholders: Requests to the Special Access Program (SAP) involving psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy.
- Health Canada (2022). Expectations for risk-management measures for clinical trials involving psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy.
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- OPQ / Légis Québec. Regulation respecting the psychotherapist’s permit (C-26 r.222.1) (current January 1, 2026).
- Psychedelic Association of Canada (2025). Sharp decline in Health Canada SAP approvals (September 2025).
- Kang, M.J.Y., Hawken, E. & Vazquez, G.H. (2022). The Mechanisms Behind Rapid Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13, 860882.
- Chrenek, C. et al. (2023). Community ketamine program for treatment-resistant depression, Edmonton, Alberta. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1283733.
- Phelps, J. (2017). Developing Guidelines and Competencies for the Training of Psychedelic Therapists. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 57(5), 450–487.
- Cavarra, M. et al. (2022). Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy: A Systematic Review of Associated Psychological Interventions. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, 887255.
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