The Western Canada Psychoanalytic Society (formerly Western Branch Canadian Psychoanalytic Society) is an association of psychoanalysts engaged in the development and advancement of clinical psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic thought in the Western Provinces of Canada. The WCPS is a branch of the Canadian Psychoanalytic Society, a component society of the International Psychoanalytic Association (IPA), the world’s leading association of professional psychoanalysts. Founded in Edmonton in 1978, the branch moved to Vancouver in 1995, where the majority of the members reside.
The WCPS presents many educational programs throughout the academic year that are open to the mental health community. Its signature event is the Annual Scientific Meeting (ASM), a day of presentations and workshops that cover a wide range of clinical and theoretical topics. The ASM is well attended by mental health professionals from the greater Vancouver area, Vancouver Island, Alberta, and Washington State. The Extension Program is another major undertaking of the WCPS and offers courses in the theory and practice of psychoanalytic psychotherapy and its applications to the community at large. In addition to these major academic activities, the WCPS sponsors a Scientific Program, which consists of four annual scientific meetings that focus on clinical and theoretical issues arising in the clinical practices of members, candidates, or guests of the WCPS.
Membership in the WCPS is open to individuals who have completed psychoanalytic training at a branch of the Canadian Psychoanalytic Society, including the Western Canada Psychoanalytic Institute (formerly Vancouver Institute of Psychoanalysis), or by application from another psychoanalytic society sanctioned by the IPA. The members meet on a quarterly basis to carry out the business of the society. For further information on the various programs and activities sponsored by the WCPS, contact info@wcpsi.org.