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Sessions with a Psychologist can be funded in several different ways.
This includes but is not limited to:
The Better Access to Mental Health initiative enables clients to receive a Medicare rebate when attending psychological treatment under a GP referral/ MHTP (mental health treatment plan).
Clients wishing to attend under a MHTP, are encouraged to make an appointment with their GP to discuss their situation and to request a referral to see a psychologist. The GP will determine eligibility for a MHTP referral and may suggest a suitable psychologist.
Clients with a valid referral from a GP or psychiatrist will be eligible to receive a Medicare rebate for up to 10 sessions with a psychologist per calendar year.
Clients attending under a Mental Health Care Plan referral, are required to pay an upfront fee at the time of their appointment. A Medicare rebate will be processed on the spot for any client making payments (in person at the clinic) on the day of their appointment.
For sessions being conducted remotely, payments are made over the phone on the day of service, by calling the clinic at the completion of the appointment.
Receipts are then emailed directly to the client, so that a rebate can be obtained using the Medicare Express Plus App on your phone or logging into your MyGov account, to make a claim through Medicare.
Any upfront fees that are not paid for on the day of service will incur a $20 late payment fee and must be paid within 48 hours. If a client’s account remains unpaid after this period, and no contact has been made with the clinic to arrange a payment plan, future scheduled appointments may be cancelled. No further appointments can be made, until payment has been received.
If a client has private health insurance that includes psychological counselling as part of their extras cover, they may be eligible for a partial rebate. It is recommended that clients contact their individual insurance provider for further information about their individual coverage. A receipt will be issued at the time of payment, to enable clients to claim their private insurance rebate.
Clients are welcome to make an appointment with a psychologist without a referral from their GP or a psychiatrist. If this is done, payment for sessions is required on the day of their appointment and no rebates from Medicare can be issued.
Please be aware that Fernhills Clinic is not an emergency service and cannot provide this service.
Sessions will run for 50 minutes each. Unfortunately, if you arrive late for an appointment, your practitioner is not able to run past the original allocated duration.
Payment is by Eftpos, Visa or Mastercard. Cash is not kept on the premises to provide change. Please call the clinic to make payment over the phone after a remote/telehealth session.
The cost of a 50 minute session varies depending on the psychologist that you are seeing.
All reports written by Psychologists will be charged at the Psychologists recommended fee.
To attend sessions punctually.
To notify clinic by 12 noon the day prior to your scheduled appointment, if unable to attend. You must notify the clinic by 12 noon Saturday if you are unable to attend an appointment scheduled for the Monday following.
Payment for sessions is required at the time of consultation.
If receiving a remote/telehealth service, the client is required to call at the end of their session to make payment over the phone. Please note that Medicare rebates cannot be issued remotely, when paying over the phone. Clients are welcome to attend onsite at the clinic to have their rebate processed, or can lodge their benefit claim via the Medicare Express Plus App on their phone, or via their MyGov account online.
To ensure that you have turned off all electronic equipment including mobile phones during face to face consultations.
The client has the right to withdraw their consent to treatment at any time.
To keep clinic informed of any changes to contact details and/or consent to contact others.
If the client is unhappy at any stage with the quality of service they have received, we encourage them to notify the clinic via reception, to register a complaint. Should you consider either that your confidentiality has been breached or a request for access/correction has been unfairly denied, you may lodge a complaint with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) or AHPRA. A copy of our privacy policy is available to view upon request at reception.
To book an initial appointment with one of our psychologists, please contact our knowledgeable intake team on (03) 9758 4144.
At the time of booking in, you will be assisted with scheduling two appointments times. This will be your initial consultation and a follow up session which is generally booked for two weeks following your first session.
During your initial consultation your psychologist will discuss with you your treatment plan and the best way to space your appointments out that will facilitate the therapy needed, and work in with your schedule/affordability.
As part of our ongoing commitment to provide the best care possible, we want to remind you of your responsibility regarding scheduling appointments with our reception team. It is crucial for the continuity and effectiveness of your treatment that you schedule forwarding appointments promptly after each session with your psychologist and we recommend that you keep 2-3 sessions booked in, ahead.
Booking appointments in advance is essential for several reasons:
Continuity of Care: Scheduling appointments ahead ensures that you maintain regular contact with your psychologist, which is vital for the progress of your treatment.
Availability of Preferred Times: We understand that certain appointment times may be more convenient for you. By booking ahead, you increase the likelihood of securing your preferred time slot. If your preferred time is not available you can request to be placed on a cancellation list.
Fair Access to Appointments: To ensure equitable access for all our clients, we have a policy allowing a maximum of 3 sessions to be booked ahead. Exceptions may be made for individual clients with special circumstances, upon instruction from the treating psychologist. If you wish to speak to your psychologists about this option, please do so at your next session.
This measure prevents a small handful of clients from monopolizing preferred appointment times, thus ensuring fair access for everyone. This is particularly relevant with our child/adolescent psychologist clients, and those needing appointments after 4pm.
We encourage you to plan ahead and schedule your appointments with our reception team accordingly. By doing so, you not only facilitate your own treatment journey but also contribute to maintaining an efficient and fair appointment system for all.
Due to demand for this service, unfortunately if you fail to arrive for a scheduled appointment or do not cancel by 12 noon the day prior to your appointment, we cannot guarantee a further appointment, and this will also incur a cancellation fee, which is charged at the full cost of consultation.
Fernhills Clinic has zero tolerance for aggressive or rude behaviour. This policy is in place for the comfort and safety of all our staff & clients.
We are not an emergency service and our practitioners are not contactable on days that they are not working. Messages can be forwarded to your practitioner (via email) and will be followed up with when possible. Practitioners are generally heavily booked on their days of work, and therefore are limited in their ability to provide “over the phone” support or feedback to clients, parent/carers, teachers and any other third parties. These requests cannot always be met. If the matter remains unresolved please make an appointment to speak to the chosen practitioner.
As we are not an emergency service we cannot guarantee an appointment time within a short period of notice. Please contact the services listed below in an emergency:
All psychologists must be registered with the Psychology Board of Australia, meet high education, training, ethical and professional standards, and undertake ongoing training and skills development.
Whether it be from a Clinical Psychologist or a Registered Psychologist, you should expect the same level and quality of care, ethical behaviour and standards of practice
Psychologists with general registration (over 60% of Australia’s psychologists) have a minimum of six years of university training and supervised experience, and build on that with ongoing education. Registered psychologists use evidence-based, customised psychological approaches to assess, diagnose and treat a wide range of clients and concerns.
Clinical psychologists are trained in the assessment and diagnosis of mental illnesses and complex clinical psychological problems. They have a further 2 years of training in the area of clinical psychology getting them to a minimum of 8 years of experience.