Therapy for Health Care Workers in Alberta

You spend your shifts looking after other people. Short staffing, heavy workloads, hard decisions and difficult moments with patients can follow you home. Over time, it adds up, even when you're good at your job and care deeply about it.

KP Psychological offers confidential online therapy for nurses, physicians, care aides, pharmacists, therapists and everyone else who works in health care across Alberta, including Edmonton and Calgary. Sessions are by secure video, for people who are physically in Alberta at the time of each session.

Book a free 15-minute consultation

A nurse in scrubs holding a coffee by a window at sunrise

What health care work can carry

Burnout. The World Health Organization describes burnout as the result of chronic workplace stress that hasn't been successfully managed. It has three parts: exhaustion, feeling distant or cynical about your job, and feeling less effective at work. It's a work problem, not a personal failing.

Moral distress and moral injury. Moral injury is the lasting impact that can follow when you do, fail to prevent or witness something that goes against your values. In health care, the US National Center for PTSD gives examples such as:

  • decisions where every option leads to a bad outcome
  • not being able to give the care you believe a patient needs
  • seeing suffering and death beyond what you expected
  • caring for patients while your own safety is at risk

Traumatic stress. Critical incidents, patient deaths, violence at work, or years of hard shifts can lead to PTSD, anxiety or depression. Read more about trauma and PTSD therapy.

How common it is

If you're struggling, you're far from alone:

  • In a 2019 survey of 7,358 Canadian nurses, done before the pandemic, about 1 in 3 screened positive for major depressive disorder. More than 1 in 4 screened positive for generalized anxiety disorder or clinical burnout, and more than 1 in 5 for PTSD.
  • In the Canadian Medical Association's 2021 national survey, 53% of physicians and medical learners reported high burnout, up from 30% in 2017.
  • In a Statistics Canada survey from fall 2021, 86.5% of health care workers said they felt more stressed at work during the pandemic, including 92% of nurses.

Signs work may be staying with you

  • dreading your shifts, or feeling you have nothing left to give
  • feeling numb, detached or cynical about patients or the job
  • replaying a shift, a patient or a mistake, or images that show up uninvited
  • guilt, shame or anger about care you couldn't give
  • poor sleep, nightmares, or trouble switching off after work
  • snapping at the people you love
  • relying more on alcohol or other substances to cope
  • thinking about leaving your profession

What the research says helps

For burnout, both you and your workplace matter. A 2016 review in The Lancet pooled 52 studies of physicians. It found that both individual approaches and changes to how work is organized led to meaningful drops in burnout. Overall, burnout fell from 54% to 44%. Therapy can't fix staffing, but it can help you recover, set limits and deal with what the work has left behind.

For PTSD, trauma-focused therapy. International guidelines recommend trauma-focused therapies such as EMDR for PTSD.

For moral injury, the research is still young. The Atlas Institute for Veterans and Families notes that there's no single, defined treatment for moral injury yet, and encourages people to talk with a mental health professional. In therapy, we can work with the guilt, shame, anger and grief that often come with it. When PTSD symptoms are part of the picture, trauma-focused therapy may help too.

In this short video, Kyle covers three signs of burnout to watch for.

Things that can help day to day

  • Protect your recovery time. Sleep and real breaks between shifts matter more than they seem.
  • Talk with someone who gets it. The National Center for PTSD suggests seeking support from others about situations that cause moral distress. A trusted colleague, peer support or a debrief can ease the weight of a hard shift.
  • Notice how you're coping. More alcohol, more screen time or never switching off can be signs you need more support.
  • Be as kind to yourself as you are to your patients. Struggling after hard work doesn't mean you're bad at it.

Your confidentiality and your career

Many health care workers worry that asking for help could affect their licence or their job. Therapy here is confidential. We don't share what you tell us with your employer, your regulatory college or anyone else without your consent, except where the law requires it. We'll explain those legal limits before you start.

Paying for therapy

WCB-Alberta. Since July 23, 2025, registered nurses, registered psychiatric nurses, and certified graduate and graduate nurses have presumptive coverage. That means WCB presumes that a confirmed PTSD diagnosis, or another psychological injury after a traumatic incident at work, came from the job, unless there's evidence to the contrary. If you're not in one of those groups, WCB may still accept a claim for a work-related psychological injury, without the presumption.

Benefits and EFAP. Many extended health plans cover Registered Psychologists, and we can bill most insurance companies directly. Many employers also offer an Employee and Family Assistance Program (EFAP), which usually includes some free, confidential counselling.

See fees and insurance for details, and read about therapy for first responders if you work in emergency or public safety roles.

Who you'd see

  • Kyle Poon, M.Ed., R.Psych focuses on EMDR and trauma-focused therapy, including with nurses and other front-line workers. He is an EMDRIA Approved Trainer and Consultant. Kyle currently has a waitlist, and the free consult is a good time to talk about timing.
  • Marissa Whalley, MC, R.Psych focuses on anxiety, stress and relationships, and draws on approaches such as DBT, ACT and CBT. She currently has openings, often as soon as the following week.

What therapy looks like here

Sessions are 50 minutes, by secure video, so you can join from home or another private space. How often we meet is up to you. We work it out together, based on what fits you best, including your finances and your coverage.

A session is $250 with Kyle and $235 with Marissa. Alberta Health Care doesn't cover psychologists, but many extended health plans do, and we can bill most insurance companies directly.

Other support

  • Physicians, residents and medical students: the Alberta Medical Association's Physician and Family Support Program offers confidential support 24/7 at 1-877-767-4637.
  • Your employer's EFAP, if you have one.
  • In crisis: call or text 9-8-8 any time.

Common questions

Will my employer or my college find out?

Not from us, unless you consent or the law requires it. If WCB or a benefits plan pays, they may need some information to approve or pay for treatment. We'll explain what that means before you choose how to pay.

Do I need to be off work or have a diagnosis?

No. Many people start therapy while still working, because something feels off. You don't need a diagnosis, a referral or a WCB claim to start.

Can therapy fit around shift work?

Ask about times at your free consult. Kyle's hours are Tuesday to Friday, 10 am to 6:30 pm Alberta time. Marissa sees clients on Mondays and Thursdays, with her latest Thursday appointment at 6 pm. Because sessions are online, there's no travel time.

I'm a health professional. Shouldn't I be able to handle this myself?

Knowing a lot about health doesn't protect you from stress or trauma. Getting support is the same good care you'd want for your patients.

Do you bill insurance directly?

We can bill most insurance companies directly, so you only pay the part your plan doesn't cover. Tell us your plan at your free consult, and we'll confirm before your first session.

Book a free 15-minute consultation

Written by Kyle Poon, M.Ed., R.Psych, EMDRIA Approved Trainer and Consultant · Reviewed September 2026

Sources