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Important Information
FAQs
Psychological therapy involves talking therapies and practical strategies to help improve mental health, general functioning, life satisfaction, and overall well-being. We do not prescribe medication, but we may liaise with your treating medical practitioners to support your overall care.
All of our clinicians are trained in evidence-based psychological interventions to assist you with symptom management, behaviour change, or adjustment to difficult life circumstances. We can help either in-person or via Telehealth support.
We are also a teaching clinic offering lower-cost sessions with our provisional psychologists, who are selected based on having plenty of relevant prior experience (most are making psychology their second career). You can be assured that our provisional psychologists not only have plenty of experience, but are also supported by our senior clinical teams, ensuring you receive the highest level of care.
Once we receive your referral, or your direct enquiry, our warm and experienced administrative team will help you decide who will be the best clinician to match your needs, who will then start working with you as soon as possible.
By the way, it is NOT necessary to have a major mental illness to benefit from psychological treatment. In fact, we really love being able to provide early intervention, because we know how helpful it can be to nip things in the bud, so to speak. It's never too soon (or too late) to ask for help.
All of our clinicians are highly trained and well-equipped to meet the needs of our clients. Some are trained in EMDR, some are highly experienced in working with children, some have a special interest in eating disorders or perinatal mental health. But, it's not their professional title that predicts these skills, as any of these clinicians could have training and experience in delivering these services. Our admin team is well placed to help you select which of our clinicians is the best fit for your needs.
But what is the difference in their qualifications?
Registered Psychologists
- All registered psychologists have undertaken a minimum of five years of university training, followed by at least 12 months of supervised practice before being eligible for registration. Psychologists are registered with AHPRA (the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency, the same body that oversees doctors), and must maintain their registration through meeting annual ongoing professional development obligations. Registered psychologists are eligible to provide a Medicare rebate.
Accredited Mental Health Social Workers
- Accredited mental health social workers have completed an accredited social work degree and at least two years of post-qualifying supervised practice in a mental health setting. They must be able to demonstrate their competency in the provision of focussed psychological strategies to attain accreditation. Accredited mental health social workers are eligible to provide a Medicare rebate.
Provisional Psychologists
- Our provisional psychologists have completed at least five years of university training and hold provisional registration with AHPRA while they complete the obligations for full registration. Our provisional psychologists are selected due to their relevant past work experience; most having worked in other careers before retraining in psychology (e.g., previously worked as counsellors, lawyers, etc).
- As we are also a teaching clinic, we often host provisional psychologists on student placements during their fifth or sixth year of psychology training. These provisional psychologists are interviewed and selected based on suitability to work with our clients.
- All provisional psychologists work under clinical supervision.
Psychologists typically do not have medical training (unlike psychiatrists, who do).
Psychologists do not prescribe medication.
Some psychologists may use the title “Dr” if they have a relevant PhD or Professional Doctorate. For example, Dr Tess Crawley completed a PhD in clinical psychology in 2004.
Not necessarily. You can arrange to be seen without a referral. This is called a self-referral.
We accept referrals from all sources, although Medicare rebates are only available upon referral from your GP with a mental health care plan. It is possible to attend your first session under a fee-per-service basis and then arrange the GP referral. If you are referred by your psychiatrist or paediatrician you do not also need a GP referral.
You are welcome to lock in your appointment with us before seeing your GP to discuss whether or not you are eligible for a mental health care plan.
Important Information
PRIVATE CLIENTS: Clients are asked to pay their session fee at the time of booking their appointment. (As private fees are payable in advance, they are discounted compared to the Australian Psychological Society's recommended fees.) Medicare and private health rebates, where applicable, will be processed once your session is completed. Our current fee schedule is:
- Senior Clinicians / Team Leaders - $270.00 per 50-minute session
- Registered Psychologists / Accredited Social Workers - $240.00 per 50-minute session
- Provisionally Registered Psychologists - $160.00 per 50-minute session
THIRD PARTY REFERRALS: Sessions funded by third parties are paid upon invoice to the relevant third party, charged at the appropriate rate based on the current recommended fee schedule of the Australian Psychological Society.
SELF-MANAGED NDIS CLIENTS: We are glad to accept referrals for clients with self-managed NDIS funding. These clients will be asked to pay for their session at the time of booking their appointment.
BULK BILLING: We are not a bulk billing practice.
We are happy to accept self- referrals, however a GP referral and Mental Health Care Plan are required for clients to receive Medicare rebates.
Please be aware that we do not bulk bill to Medicare.
Self-referrals are gladly accepted. This simply means you may contact our office directly to book in to see one of our clinicians without a referral from a GP (or other professional). As with all private fee paying clients, self-referred clients are asked to pay for their session at the time of booking. Medicare does not provide rebates for self-referred clients, however clients should check their private health fund for rebate information.
We welcome referrals from all sources, not only your GP. For example, if you are pregnant and experiencing some anxiety, your obstetrician or midwife is welcome to refer you to us. We will discuss with you whether or not an additional GP referral is also required, but we’re happy to arrange an appointment without one.