Medicare If you have a referral from a GP or a psychiatrist for a Mental Health Treatment Plan you will be eligible to receive a Medicare rebate of $128.40 (for a clinical psychologist) and $88.80 (for a general psychologist) per individual session for up to 10 sessions per calendar year. You will also be eligible for a rebate for 10 group workshops per calendar. ​ After we have processed your payment we can process for rebate for you via Medicare Online. Medicare advises us that these funds will appear in your bank account within 2-3 business days. ​ Private Health Insurance If you have private health insurance that includes psychological counselling as extras cover you may be eligible for a partial rebate. It is recommended that you contact your individual insurance provider for further information about your individual coverage.

You will need to make an appointment with your GP who will assess whether you are eligible for a Mental Health Treatment Plan. To be able to claim the Medicare rebate for your session you will need to bring a copy of your Mental Health Treatment Plan to your first appointment with your psychologist at Mindspace Consulting Co.

A typical psychology counselling session is approximately 50 minutes.

No, you do not need a referral. You can make an appointment with our psychologists without a referral from your GP or a psychiatrist. If you decide to do this you will need to pay the full amount for your sessions out of your own pocket. ​ If would like to see whether you are eligible for referral under a Mental Health Treatment Plan you will need to speak with your GP or a psychiatrist prior to making your first appointment.

No, we don’t see clients through third parties unfortunately.

After making your first appointment you will be sent an introductory email confirming your appointment date and time. This will also outline information about cancellation policy, fees and rebates, and details about the location of Mindspace Consulting. If you have a Mental Health Treatment Plan you will need to bring along this paperwork to your first appointment. At the beginning of your first session your psychologist will briefly run through important paperwork with you. This will include completing a form with basic personal information (such as your name, date of birth, address and contact details) and a consent form that cover issues such as confidentiality, fees and other important information about sessions. If you have been referred by a GP or psychiatrist, we will discuss the details of your Mental Health Treatment Plan at this point. ​ After completing paperwork the remainder of the session is usually spent discussing the issues that have brought you into therapy. As well as developing a thorough understanding of your concerns, your psychologist will explore relevant background history, for example, information about your family, social relationships, work history and any past counselling that you have done. Based on this information we will begin to help you to understand more about what might be triggering and maintaining your current issues. If time allows we will also work with you to develop a collaborative and flexible plan for future therapy sessions.

Every person has a different journey through therapy. This is largely dependent on the nature of why they are coming in and what it is that they are hoping to get out of sessions. At Mindspace Consulting, we tailor therapy to suit each of our client’s needs and preferences. Some people come to therapy to develop coping strategies to reduce or manage symptoms of mental illness. This type of work can be short to medium term, but might also involve checking in less frequently over the longer-term to deal with setbacks or prevent relapse. ​ Other people come to therapy to understand long-standing patterns (such as relationship issues) that stem from experiences during their childhood, or to receive ongoing support. This type of work tends to happen over an extended period of time, although again, this is dependent on client preferences. ​ Sometimes people come to therapy for a one off session or just a handful of sessions to speak about a specific issue in their life or to talk through a particular concern.

All information that you disclose in your session with a psychologist is confidential. There are two exceptions to this rule. The first exception is if you are at risk of harm to yourself or someone else and the second exception is in relation to court orders. If either of these situations become relevant your psychologist will discuss this with you.

You can book an appointment via phone, email, or our online booking form. ​ We will send you a welcome email. This email outlines your appointment time, date and location, a new client information form, as well as a few other useful bits and pieces, like how to find us and what to bring to your first appointment. You will also be sent an SMS reminder 72 hours before your first appointment.

We have a 48-hour cancellation and rescheduling policy. This means that if you need to change or cancel your appointment you must arrange this no later than 48 hours prior to your scheduled appointment time. This gives us enough time to offer your appointment to other clients. If you fail to attend, cancel or change your appointment within 48 hours, you will be charged the 50% of the session fee, and 100% session fee if cancelled within 24 hours (Medicare and private health insurance do not provide rebates for cancelled or unattended appointments).

Counsellors can come from a broad range of training and backgrounds. Currently in Australia the term “counsellor” is not protected. This means that anyone can refer to themselves as a counsellor. Having said this many counsellors have undertaken training and education in educational settings, ranging from a Diploma up to a Masters degree. An organisation called the Psychotherapy and Counselling Federation of Australia (PACFA) has also been set up to protect the standards and ethical training of the counselling profession. ​ Psychologists are health professionals who work in a range of areas including clinical, health, neuropsychology, sports, forensic, organisational and community settings. To become a fully registered psychologist you must undertake an undergraduate degree, an Honours degree and and at least two years of supervised training and postgraduate education in the field of psychology (either a Masters, Doctorate or PhD degree). All psychologists at Mindspace Consulting have undergone at least six years of university studies. Psychologists assist people with everyday concerns such as stress and relationship difficulties, as well as mental health issues. Psychologists use “talk therapies” to help people to develop skills to cope with difficulties and to prevent on-going issues. There are a large number of research studies supporting the effectiveness of psychological therapy. ​ Psychiatrists have completed a medical degree and further training and study related to the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness. Psychiatrists specialise in the medical treatment of mental illness and can prescribe medication.