Our Regulator for today is the Psychology Council (the “Council”). The Council is governed by the Health Professions Regulatory Bodies Act, 2013(Act 875) (the “Act”) and it is responsible for training, registering and licencing Psychologists in Ghana.
The health practitioners that are required to register with the Council are:
- Psychologists;
- Psychologist Assistants;
- Paraprofessional psychologists (such as Counsellors) ; and
- Other providers of Psychological services (such as Therapists and Consultants).
The Council is mandated by the Act to register the above practitioners and a person cannot practice as any of the above unless that person has registered with and obtained the appropriate licence from the Council. The licence is valid for a year and renewed annually.
Failure to register with the Council before commencing practice is an offence punishable by a term of imprisonment of not more than 10 years or a fine of at most GHS 60,000 or both.
It is important to note that all foreign trained Psychologists and Parapsychologists are required to register with and obtain a licence from the Council before they can practice in Ghana.
Furthermore, the above health practitioners are also guided by the Public Health Act, 2021(Act 851) and the Mental Health Act, 2012 (Act 836) in their practice.
