General Sessions

Fees: range between $220 to $280 (APS recommended fee is $300)

Rebates

Medicare rebates are available for certain psychological services when there is a mental health referral from a paediatrician or psychiatrist, or a Better Access to Mental Health Care Plan registered with Medicare by your GP. The rebate available at present is $137.50 per session for 10 sessions in a calendar year. Many private health funds also provide rebates for psychological services.

What happens the first time?

The first session involves a detailed assessment where you and your psychologist can meet and begin to develop a shared understanding of your reason for attending. This will involve an assessment interview as well as the completion of some questionnaires. When attending this session with your child, the psychologist will try to spend time with parents and children separately as well as together. The assessment will cover the reason for a psychological assessment, the developmental history of the child, the family history and functioning, and functioning of the child in other areas of their life such as social and educational settings.

What is a therapy session?

Your psychologist will use evidence-based therapeutic interventions to help you obtain the goals you have determined through the assessment process. These interventions are likely to include a combination of working directly with children and also their parents, and sometimes the whole family. The role of the therapist is to listen, empathise, inform, guide and support children and their parents to make desired changes in their lives. Trying things out in everyday life between sessions is an important part of therapy and essential for good progress to occur. The number of sessions required varies. Some families need only a couple of sessions to help to set them on their desired path, others might attend for 12 or more.

What is a clinical interview?

The clinical interview involves asking the parent and child about the child's current functioning and taking a detailed account of their developmental, social and educational history. The parent (and teacher where relevant) will be asked to complete some questionnaires also. 

What happens the first time?

The first session involves a detailed assessment where you and your psychologist can meet and begin to develop a shared understanding of your reason for attending. This will involve an assessment interview as well as the completion of some questionnaires. When attending this session with your child, the psychologist will try to spend time with parents and children separately as well as together. The assessment will cover the reason for a psychological assessment, the developmental history of the child, the family history and functioning, and functioning of the child in other areas of their life such as social and educational settings.

What is a therapy session?

Your psychologist will use evidence-based therapeutic interventions to help you obtain the goals you have determined through the assessment process. These interventions are likely to include a combination of working directly with children and also their parents, and sometimes the whole family. The role of the therapist is to listen, empathise, inform, guide and support children and their parents to make desired changes in their lives. Trying things out in everyday life between sessions is an important part of therapy and essential for good progress to occur. The number of sessions required varies. Some families need only a couple of sessions to help to set them on their desired path, others might attend for 12 or more.

Is what I tell you confidential and kept secret?

Registered psychologists are required to abide by the Psychologists Registration Board of New South Wales Code of Professional Conduct and The Australian Psychological Society's code of ethics. You have the right to confidentiality and privacy and to determining when and whether information about you will be released to any other party except in the following circumstances.

Registered Psychologists are required by law to report any circumstances where they have been informed, or are concerned about, a risk of physical, sexual, or emotional harm to a child or young person, or where a child, young person or adult has disclosed an intention of harming themselves or of harming another person.

If you attend this service with a referral from a paediatrician or psychiatrist or a GP Better Access to Mental Health Care Plan, and claim part of the fee from Medicare, there are certain reporting requirements to the referrer which must be adhered to. This means the psychologist will provide a written report at each 6 session interval, outlining the assessment, the number of sessions attended and your progress in treatment. You can obtain more information about this from your psychologist.