Credentials, Training Background and Work Experiences
I am a Registered Psychologist (Counselling and Clinical Psychology) in the Province of Ontario, Canada. I am also a Certified Therapist in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) by the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (CACBT). I decided to enter the mental health profession back in high school because I wanted to help others. I completed undergraduate education and Master’s degree in China. Then I came to Canada as an international student and earned a Ph.D. in Counselling Psychology in the University of Alberta. Since 2012, I have received my clinical training in two Chinese University Counselling Centres, Clinical Services, Faculty of Education, University of Alberta, Department of Psychosocial and Spiritual Resources, Cross Cancer Institute (Edmonton), and Adult Acute Psychiatric Inpatient Unit, Alberta Hospital Edmonton. I lived in Edmonton, Alberta for 4 years and came to Toronto to do my pre-doctoral residency in CBT Associates, which is a large private practice specialized in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT). Since then, I also worked as a psychologist at the Forest Hill Centre for CBT and the University of Toronto Health & Wellness Centre. During my employment at the University of Toronto Health & Wellness Centre, I designed and implemented a collaborative program with psychiatrists team. The program combined Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to help individuals with bipolar disorder and psychosis. I presented the program’s outcome at the 2021 Canadian post-secondary mental health conference.
Currently, I am working as a psychologist at a private practice in the Financial District of Downtown Toronto.
What I Do
I aspire to be an excellent clinician, clinical supervisor/trainer, and leader in mental health profession. I believe that ongoing practice, reading, reflection, asking for feedback, and integrating them into my behavior/practice are crucial to become better. Throughout my study and career journey, I strive to live up to the aspiration.
Clinically, I work primarily from combining Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotion-focused Therapy (EFT) and Interpersonal Process. I value empathy, compassion, and understanding in clinical work. Also, I routinely seek feedback from clients to make sure my work meets their needs. I have received solid training in providing psychological assessment and psychotherapy to adults with various concerns such as depression, anxiety, trauma, grief and loss, relationship challenges, stress management, anger management, self-criticism, psychosis and medical concerns.
I am particularly passionate about existential issues, such as meaning of life, death and dying, and the nature and art of making life decisions. That is why I am especially interested in working with people who have health anxiety (hypochondriasis), grief and loss, and are suffering from chronic medical illness. Also, I was drawn to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) due to its existential component. With ACT, I help clients identify what matters to them (life values) and what gets in the way. Then, we work together to solve the problems, accept the challenges or reduce the impact of them. Ultimately, the goal of my therapy is to help clients lead a meaningful life despite the concerns still exist sometimes.
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Leadership-wise, I served as the Student Representative in the Board of Directors of the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS) from 2016-2017. ACBS is the international professional home for Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Since then, I co-founded the Asian Culture and CBS Special Interest Group (SIG) and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion SIG. Also, I am serving as the Chair of the Counselling Psychology Section of the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) from 2022-2023. Moreover, I am the President-elect of the Association of Chinese Helping Professionals and Psychologists–International (ACHPPI) Furthermore, I serve on the Board of Greater Toronto Area’s Hong Fook Mental Health Association. Additionally, I am a professional member of the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) and the Canadian Association of Cognitive and Behavioural Therapies (CACBT).
In terms of clinical supervision/training, my doctoral dissertation was about clinical supervisors’ experience of asking supervisees for feedback on their supervision. I am starting to gain clinical supervision experience. Also, I have provided some introduction-level workshops about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) within the Association of Chinese Helping Professionals and Psychologists–International (ACHPPI).
I tend to provide training in a down-to-earth mannner and use languages that align with audiences’ background.
Professional Development Trainings Attended
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) online training
09/2015-08/2016, Evidence-based Practice Institute, Seattle, WA, U.S.A.
Facilitator: Dr. Matthieu Villatte
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) online training
09/2016-08/2017, Evidence-based Practice Institute, Seattle, WA, U.S.A.
Facilitator: Dr. Kelly Koerner
Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)workshop
06/06/2019 – 06/07/2019, Evidence-Based Therapy, Training and Testing, Toronto, ON, Canada
Facilitators: Drs. Candice Monson and Philippe Shnaider
Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) Level 1 Intensive Training
09/08/2021 – 12/08/2021, York University Psychology Clinic. Toronto, ON, Canada
Facilitators: Drs. Leslie Greenberg and Serine Warwar
Clinical Hypnosis Level 1 Workshop
01/12/2022 – 04/12/2022, The American Society of Clinical Hypnosis (ASCH). Kissimmee, Florida, U.S.A.
Facilitators: Delle Jacobs, Drs. Akira Otani, Audrey Cleary, Mary Wells, and Linda Thomson
Presentations at Peer-Reviewed Local, Regional, & National/International Conferences
Luo, H., (2022, April). A Framework to Integrate CBT, ACT, EFT and CFT. Mini-workshop presented at the 38th annual meeting of the Society for the Exploration of Psychotherapy Integration (SEPI), Laussane, Switzerland.
Luo, H. & Mumtaz, S. (August 2021). Collaborative Care for Students with Bipolar Disorder and Psychosis. Presentation presented at the Collaborations for Change: Connecting Research and Practice in Post-Secondary Mental Health, Online, Canada.
Luo, H., Masuda, A., Loureiro, L., Payne, J. & Rosen, D. (July, 2020). Providing Culturally-appropriate ACT. Panel discussion presented as a chair at the Association for Contextual Behavioral Science World Conference, Online.
Miller, J., Luo, H. & Pott, T. (July, 2020). Transitioning to Counselling Practice at a Distance. Panel discussion presented as a panelist at the 2020 Canadian Psychological Association Virtual Annual Convention, Online, Canada.
Luo, H. & Hanson, W. (October, 2018). Connecting Counselling Psychology’s Values to Practice. Poster session presented at the second Canadian Counselling Psychology Conference, Calgary, AB.
Hanson, W., Poth, C., Dubue, J., Luo, H., Zhou, H., & Armstrong, D. (August, 2016). Mixed Method Research in Counselling Psychology: A 10-year Follow-up. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association, Denver, CO.
Luo, H., (July, 2015). Affirmative Counselling for LGBT Population. Paper session presented at the 2015 Conference of Committee of Clinical and Counselling Psychology, Chinese Psychological Society, Beijing, China