Overview

This self-paced eLearning activity equips psychologists with the essential knowledge to support clients who use guide, hearing, and assistance dogs.

It covers the legal, ethical, and clinical considerations for integrating assistance animals into psychological care and workplace settings.

Participants will explore the role of assistance animals in mental health treatment and learn to distinguish them from emotional support animals.

The activity addresses legal requirements and compliance, employee rights and responsibilities, employer and HR obligations, and best practices for workplace integration. It provides insights into managing customer interactions, understanding public access rights, and workplace health and safety when assistance animals are present. The activity also provides guidance on handling complaints, dispute resolution, and monitoring compliance is also provided, ensuring psychologists can confidently support clients while meeting professional and legal standards.

Level of Learning

Foundational. This activity is targeted to those new to the topic.

Target audience

This activity is suitable for: Psychologists GP, Educators, and Allied heath professionals.

Professional competencies for psychology

The Psychology Board of Australia (PsyBA) have updated the Professional competencies for psychology which come into effect on 1 December 2025. 

This activity addresses the following PsyBA Professional competencies for psychology: Competency 2, 6, and 7.

APS CPD-Approved

This activity has been assessed against the APS Standards for CPD activities and approved for its education quality. Learn more about the APS CPD Approval process.

This activity is endorsed by CPD Australia.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this activity, participants should be able to:

• identify and explain the certification process, eligibility criteria, and legal rights associated with guide, hearing, and assistance dogs under the Guide, Hearing, and Assistance Dogs Act 2009 (QLD),
• recognise public access laws and ethical considerations to real-world scenarios, ensuring compliance with state and national legislation when working with clients who rely on assistance animals, and
• implement appropriate responses to common challenges, including:
  • handling public access refusals,
  • interacting with handlers, and
  • educating businesses and the public on the role of assistance animals. 

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