PRACTICE STATEMENT

Brian J. Bigelow, Ph.D., C. Psych., ABPP, FSICPP, FPPR, FICPP

Dr. Brian J. Bigelow is a Registered Psychologist (cert. # 995) in the Province of Ontario. In May, 2005, he became diplomated by the American Board of Professional Psychology in Child & Adolescent Clinical Psychology (cert. # 6004). The ABPP designation is the most prestigious credential in professional psychology. Dr. Bigelow has been in independent practice for over 30 years, concentrating on child and adolescent issues. Informed by his extensive experience as a Professor of Psychology, as well as continuing professional training and supervision, Dr. Bigelow has expertise in clinical, developmental, and school psychology, such as with learning, behavioral and emotional problems. Dr. Bigelow has also extensive experience in forensic assessments, such as decisional capacity under the Substitute Decisions Act, parenting capacity, and abuse and neglect issues under the Child and Family Services Act. Dr. Bigelow is also experienced in court-ordered custody and access assessments. Dr. Bigelow has also been retained for civil litigation assessments. As a Full Professor, Dr. Bigelow’s chief duties are in undergraduate and graduate teaching in child psychology and psychopathology, with occasional duties in the teaching of social and forensic child psychology, developmental disabilities and professional ethics. He is also cross-appointed to the Department of Forensic Sciences. He has recently been the Anglophone Director of Human Development. Please note that, unless otherwise stated, Dr. Bigelow’s independent practice is not under the auspices of Laurentian University.

Dr. Bigelow is a member of the Ontario and Canadian Psychological Associations, as well as the American Psychological Association. As a Diplomate-Fellow in forensic sciences with the International College of Prescribing Psychologists, a member of the American College of Forensic Psychology and a Member of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. Dr. Bigelow is held to high ethical standards that meet and exceed those normally expected of a Registered Psychologist.

As part of his normal duties, Dr. Bigelow supervises psychologists on the temporary register and regularly consults with individuals who simply want to learn about psychology and child and family issues. While Dr. Bigelow is all too willing to share information with the public and to be retained for assessments, if students or clients divulge their intent to harm themselves or others, or reveal suspected child abuse, mandatory reporting rules apply. Dr. Bigelow also requests that you do not mislead him or his associates, such as requesting that your child be assessed for the purpose of using this assessment as adversarial evidence in a custody or access action. Serious misconduct of a professional nature will also be reported to the applicable professional college. Questions pertaining to Dr. Bigelow’s own conduct are firstly to be discussed with him personally, then if unresolved, with his colleagues, or with The College of Psychologists of Ontario (416) 961-8817).

Requests for assessments are to be made to Dr. Bigelow at TheDepartment of Psychology, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, at(705) 675-1151 (ext. 4256) or by leaving a message at his residence (705) 694-5719 or his e-mail (brian@doctorbigelow.ca).

A contract outlining the specific clinical or psycho-legal framework, applicable ethical codes, releases of information, etc., and the fee structure will be presented to you for your approval and signature prior to any assessment. Hourly rates serve as a general guide to services provided and may vary somewhat depending on the requester’s financial circumstances. As a general guideline, The Ontario Psychological Association’s as of 2009 suggested fee schedule is $205.00/hr. Adjusting for the economies of the North, the normal and customary hourly fee for Dr. Bigelow’s clinical assessments is $110.00/hr. and for forensic counseling or assessments is $160.00/hr. Cases vary so much in complexity that it is necessary to discuss the fee structure in detail for the case in question. A typical family assessment takes about 50 hours to complete, and can range up to over 100 hours, and all of this time is rarely reflected fully in your bill. These charges underestimate the substantial time and expertise involved in preparing a professional report and following it up afterwards. Funds are due upon delivery of the report. Government agencies will be billed.

Unless other arrangements are made, court appearances are billed at $800.00 per half-day, payable in advance. Cancellations of court appearances must be within 48 hour notice or a minimum of a half-day charge will be billed to you. Being subpoenaed/summoned is no substitute for being properly paid and it must be clear to you that you understand this. An implicit contract of service for hire will be assumed. Failure to pay your bill exerts a real conflict of interest on our testimony in court and this pressure may be seen to alter our opinion, which we will not do.

If your ability to pay has been seriously compromised by economic hardship (e.g., sudden job loss), it is incumbent of you to declare this material fact to Dr. Bigelow, or his associates working on the case, before you discuss your case with any of us. We will at times help those in need if we are in a position to do so. We are very sensitive to peoples’ financial limitations. Accordingly, if time permits, we will agree to complete an assessment or render other relevant assistance for a reduced or pro bono fee reflecting your financial circumstances.

If Dr. Bigelow or his associates cannot properly address your question or for any reason cannot complete your assessment in a timely manner, all monies will be returned to you and every effort will be made to secure competent assistance for you.

Dr. Bigelow understands the importance of your privacy and is committed to protecting it. Accordingly, unless there is an emergency, I will not collect private information from you without your consent. I will collect and record personal information that I believe is needed to render you with a competent service. If other information is asked of you, then the reason for this will be fully explained to you and accepted with your consent. In addition to rendering a professional service to you, I may also use client information to find ways to improve those services, to help train new professions working with me or my colleagues, and to help identify and correct and risks and errors.

The protection of your privacy is secured through established professional procedures in my organization/office. Specifically, all private information is kept in a secure, locked area. Any staff or colleagues who works with me who also knows you personally must let me know this fact. In this instance, personal information is not then released to them without your express consent or unless there is an emergency. Anyone I hire to assist me in my work (i.e., the circle of care) is allowed to see or handle your information only if it is necessary to do their job. Information about you may occasionally be seen by my College of Psychology or other persons allowed to audit my files by law. However, I do not allow any information that identifies you personally or my files to leave my office unless this is permitted or justified by law, a court order, my profession’s code of ethics, in cases of mandatory reporting, or with your consent.

If you refuse us to disclose information about you to a person or agency that needs it in order to render you with an appropriate service, then we are required by law to inform that person that you have refused consent to provide this information.

Except as may be required by law, it is our policy not to allow external researchers to see information about you, unless you give your consent.

With few exceptions, you have the right to see your record of service and to request copies of this information in your record. Exceptions are there for your protection to protect others mentioned in your files. In this event, your records will be amended accordingly before you can see them and at your expense.

If you believe that information in your records is not accurate, you may request that we correct the information. If we do not agree with your request, then we may file notice of disagreement into your record.

We will speak with you directly about any concerns or questions that you may have about your privacy and if you are not satisfied you may contact the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (416-326-3333 or 1-800-387-0073).

Sincerely,

Brian J. Bigelow, Ph.D., C. Psych., ABPP, FSICPP, FPPR, FICPP