With the increasing amount of services accessible in our province that incorporate equines, it is important to educate ourselves on the many distinctions between programs to ensure we are accessing safe and appropriate services.

Adaptive Riding:
There are multiple associations that provide training for riding instructors to gain the skills necessary to ensure safe practices when working with children and adults with special needs. If you are seeking recreational opportunities for your child or family member to participate in adaptive riding lessons, please ensure your provider has an active certification with one of the following:

• The Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association (CanTRA)
• The Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship (PATH)
• The Certified Horsemanship Association (CHA): Instructor of Riders with Dissabilities certification 

If your service provider is unable to provide proof of competency then their is greater risk for injury as they may not be trained in appropriate mounting/dismounting techniques, human anatomy, adaptive equipment, etc. 

Therapy Services:
In order to be able to provide "therapy" services, a provider must hold a valid license with their governing body (ie: license to practice occupational therapy, social work, counselling, physiotherapy, etc). If you are pursuing therapy services, please ensure your provider is licensed to conduct services. 

Therapy Services

Reserved titles, prescribed under section 12 of the Health Professions Act as being for the exclusive use of registrants of regulatory colleges, are a central and critical public protection element of Manitoba’s health professions regulatory framework.

Reserved titles afford a means for consumers to identify the different types of health care providers, to distinguish the qualified from the unqualified and to differentiate those practitioners who are regulated from those who are not. Titles must adequately serve the public in describing the practitioner and the services being provided and must distinguish the practitioner from others performing services outside the jurisdiction of the regulatory body. The Seaton Commission explained that while it may not be in the public interest to maintain exclusive scopes of practice, it may be appropriate to grant an exclusive (reserved) title to a health profession so the public will know that the professional with whom they are dealing is regulated by a college and is therefore qualified and subject to disciplinary processes for incompetent, impaired or unethical practice.

Section 12.1 of the Health Professions Act expressly prohibits a person other than a registrant of a regulatory college from using a reserved title, an abbreviation of the title or an equivalent of the title in another language to describe the person’s work, in association with or as part of another title describing the person’s work, or in association with a description of the person’s work. Some very limited exceptions to this prohibition are permitted.

If you know of any unliscensed professional claiming to provide "therapy" services please read the following:
Unlicensed practice may be defined as a person claiming to perform activities of a licensed healthcare professional such as Physical Therapy, Speech Language Pathology, Social Worker, and/or Occupational Therapy. When you become aware of unlicensed practice in your province (or another) as a licensed healthcare professional you are ethically* required to report this activity. The best way is to contact that province’s Professional Licensing Board.
The best process is to:
1. Look up the Professional Licensing Board website for the profession the person is claiming to perform.
2. Verify the licensure status of the individual you are researching. Is the license current, expired, or unlicensed?
3. Next find the location on the site to “File a Complaint”.
4. Find the “Forms” section. You may need to print a form and mail it, or file electronically: this varies by province.
5. Complete the form using as much detail as possible. If the unlicensed practice has a website or Facebook page promoting the unlicensed activity, take a screenshot for your records. You may need to provide a copy to the Licensing Board, as well. 6. Most complaint forms may be completed anonymously, however, this makes the complaint hard to track.
7. The province may choose to investigate.