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Integrative Psychiatry Canada offers a one time multi-disciplinary mental health diagnostic assessment, where a social worker or psychotherapist and psychiatrist will collaborate to be able to provide multi-modal mental health recommendations from a bio-psycho-social-spiritual perspective. This collaborative and social work/psychotherapist piece is not covered by OHIP.
Our multi-disciplinary mental health diagnostic assessment includes the following elements
- Initial Virtual Meeting and Assessment with a Registered Social Worker
- One time Virtual Consultation with a Psychiatrist
- Up to 10 further Virtual treatment sessions with a Social Worker or Psychotherapist, who may collaborate with the psychiatrist via discussions following each session
- Psychiatrist and Social Worker or Psychotherapist jointly author a multi-disciplinary mental health assessment report.
Our service is unique in that the report will be provided directly to you. We feel the report may provide you with important psycho-education or be a tool to provide any care providers with guidance when caring for you.
It is important to note that Integrative Psychiatry Canada does not offer assessments for court,
independent medical examinations or capacity assessments. This is not an OHIP covered service and is
private pay.
For more information:
L B & Associates is proud to be the
preferred partner with Integrative Psychiatry Canada.
IPC INTAKE SOCIAL WORKERS
Christian Appleton, MSW-RSW is a clinical social worker who has worked with families and children in a variety of roles for over 15 years in child welfare. More recently, he has been providing individual and group counselling with a particular focus on healthy relationships and relapse prevention. He has experience working with individuals who struggle with addiction and mental health issues, anxiety, depression and relationship challenges. Christian holds a B.A in Psychology from the University of Waterloo and a Master of Social Work degree from Wilfrid Laurier University. He works primarily from a cognitive-behavioural framework and has skill and knowledge incorporating philosophical, artistic, spiritual and religious themes as a part of therapeutic process.
Maureen Smeding, MACP-RSW appreciates the courage it takes to seek support, and the comfort of having a compassionate ally walk alongside us through the difficulties of life. As a social worker and psychotherapist of over 13 years, Maureen has had the honor of supporting clients through direct therapy, system navigation, and health promotion. She has worked in various settings including healthcare, community practice, and crisis-care. Maureen takes a collaborative and experiential approach to care, joining her clinical insights with a client’s unique strengths and resources to uncover pathways for moving through current obstacles and accessing innate capacities for healing and growth. Maureen offers a safe, judgement free space to explore your current concerns and access the supports needed to overcome current difficulties. She looks forward to joining you in this journey.
Melissa Beer, BSW-RSW works from a client centred approach and strives to meet clients where they are at. She provides a gentle, empathic, and non-judgemental approach. She has a wealth of knowledge and experience working with people who struggle with addictions and mental health issues. She has worked in various roles in social services that have provided her with excellent interviewing and counselling skills.
Dr. Anson Liu, Psychiatrist, completed a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Finance at the University of Sydney, a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Texas at San Antonio, a Master’s Degree in Hotel Administration at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, and his medical degree at the University at Buffalo, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He completed both his General Psychiatry residency training and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship training at the University of Maryland/Sheppard Pratt Hospital. He trained with many world-renowned experts in psychiatry and psychotherapy, including authors and contributors to the creation of the DSM-5 diagnoses at his training program. He trained with Dr. John Gunderson, the founder of the diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder into the DSM during his training. Sheppard Pratt Hospital is one of U.S. News and World Report ranked best psychiatric hospitals in the United States and a quaternary psychiatric hospital in the country, accepting patients nationwide. As a result, he is an expert diagnostician as well as psychotherapist. He is also well-published in the field of psychiatry as well as other medical fields, with over 10 publications in major medical journals as well as presentations in national scientific meetings in the fields of psychiatry, anesthesiology and gastroenterology. He had the honor of being nominated as the Chief Resident/Fellow of his training program for his outstanding clinical work as well as leadership in the program. He is board certified in General Psychiatry as well as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in the United States. He is registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario (CPSO) and is certified to practice independently in General Psychiatry as well as Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in Ontario. Dr. Liu has extensive experiences in forensics and medico-legal work in both the United States and in Canada, ranging from assisting in independent psychiatric assessments in criminal cases, conducting evaluations for civil cases, including accident benefit cases and disability claims, evaluations for comprehensive treatment plan recommendations as well as evaluations for disability applications. He has performed independent medical evaluations in Ontario including Catastrophic Impairment Evaluations, Tort Evaluations, disputes with OCF-18, Minor Injury Guidelines (MIG), Income Replacement Benefits, Accident Benefits, Housekeeping and Home Maintenance Benefits as well as Mental Health Disability Claims. He has earned a Certification in Medico-Legal Expertise as well as a Certification in Catastrophic Impairment Evaluations from the Canadian Academy of Psychologists in Disability Assessment (CAPDA). He has extensive outpatient and telepsychiatry practice experience serving children, adolescents and adults in the United States and Canada, treating Mood Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Psychotic Disorders, Substance Use Disorders, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Personality Disorders, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). He has special expertise in treating Personality Disorders, PTSD and high functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder. He was the medical director for a community health clinic and the founder and CEO of Comprehensive Psychiatric Services of Maryland, a boutique private practice in Maryland. Since relocating to Canada, he was the lead psychiatrist for the First Step Early Psychosis Intervention Team as well as staff psychiatrist for the Flexible Assertive Community Treatment (FACT) team, Children Services team and Acute Adult Services team at the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) at Waterloo Wellington. He created and implemented a new pathway for children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder for faster diagnosis and referral or initiation of treatment and services in the Wellington Waterloo Region. He has continued seeing private practice patients with medication as well as psychotherapy treatment in Maryland, Arizona and certain provinces in Canada via telepsychiatry. He is a speaker and consultant in the region for various topics for hospitals, health systems and pharmaceutical companies. He is also currently an executive coach for executives and physicians, helping them make changes in mindset and behaviors to optimize performance and quality of life. He holds an academic position at McMaster University School of Medicine, Waterloo Regional Campus as an Assistant Clinical Professor where he teaches medical students, residents and fellows. Previous to his career in medicine, he has had years of experience in the business and corporate world. He was a general manager for a nightclub, a sales and marketing manager for a luxury hotel chain and a senior sales consultant for the pharmaceutical industry. In his life outside of medicine, he enjoys spending time with his family and is a competitive powerlifter. He was the 2022 Ontario Powerlifting Association Provincial Champion in his age and weight class.
