The Therapist Who
Coded a Directory
I'm a Licensed Professional Counselor in Eugene, Oregon. I built a free, community-powered provider directory because I believe there's a better way — for therapists and the clients who need them.
Fixing a Search Nightmare
A Personal Journey Through Code & Clinical Practice
When I started my private practice, I noticed something that bothered me: the tools clients use to find therapists were full of outdated info, wrong insurance panels, and profiles nobody maintained. I thought there had to be a better way.
So I started building one. My hope is simple — as more Oregon therapists claim their profiles and keep them current, this directory becomes a living, accurate resource that empowers providers to be found and clients to find care they can trust. Always free for patients. Always free to claim and build a profile for providers.
Why a Better Directory Matters
Finding a therapist should be straightforward, but most directories make it harder than it needs to be. Outdated contact info, wrong insurance panels, and stale profiles mean that clients often hit dead ends before they even make a first call. Therapists deserve better representation, and patients deserve accurate information.
Oregon Counselor Directory takes a different approach: I pre-populate profiles from public licensing data, then invite each therapist to claim theirs — for free. Once claimed, you control everything: your photo, bio, specialties, insurance, availability, and whether you're visible at all.
The more providers who participate, the more powerful and accurate the directory becomes for everyone. It's a community-driven network effect — built by providers, for patients.
"Every claimed profile makes the next patient's search a little easier — and that's the whole point."
— Eric Richers, LPC · Eugene, Oregon
See It in Action
An overview of what Oregon Counselor Directory offers — from instant search and smart filtering for clients, to free profile claiming and a clean dashboard for providers.
The directory gets more powerful with every provider who claims their profile. Accurate insurance panels, current availability, real contact info — that's the vision. As the network grows, clients spend less time searching and more time getting the care they need.
Under the Hood: 15,000+ Providers
The directory didn't start with a sign-up form. It started with a scraping pipeline.
Multi-Source Acquisition
Custom console JS and BeautifulSoup scrapers pull from the Oregon licensing board, public directories, and NPI databases. Every provider in the state is indexed.
OSINT Enrichment
Proxy directories mask phone numbers behind tracking redirects. My Playwright + NLP pipeline bypasses this — decoding Base64 links, scraping real practice websites, and extracting verified contact info.
Shadow Profiles
A dual-database architecture maps scraped public data into "shadow" profiles that any licensed therapist can immediately claim, verify, and own — for free, forever.
async def enrich_provider(page, name, city):
# Search Bing, defeat tracking
query = f"{name} therapist {city} OR"
await page.goto(f"https://bing.com/search?q={query}")
# Decode Base64 tracking links
link = decode_bing_url(a.get('href'))
# Rip organic phone numbers via NLP
phones = extract_valid_phones(site_text)
return { "phone": phones[0], "url": link }How It Works
Whether you're searching for care or growing your practice — here is the full flow.
For Clients
Search & Filter
Filter by OHP/Medicaid, telehealth, sliding scale, specialty, language, gender, and real-time availability status.
Review Verified Profiles
Credentials, treatment approaches, bios, and transparent pricing. State-verified providers carry a blue badge.
Connect Directly
Call, visit the website, book online, or use the built-in matchmaking tool to send inquiries to qualified providers instantly.
For Providers
Claim Your Profile — Free
Your listing likely already exists. Search your name, claim it with your license number, and I verify with the state board within 24 hours.
Your Dashboard, Your Data
Update your photo, bio, specialties, and insurance. Toggle "Accepting Patients," hide your profile when full, or pause lead delivery.
Receive Qualified Leads
Our matchmaker routes client inquiries directly to your dashboard. Upgrade to Growth ($10/mo) or Pro ($25/mo) for weekly or unlimited leads.
The Network Effect
Every therapist who claims their profile makes the directory more accurate. Every accurate profile means a patient finds the right care faster. This only works if the community builds it together.