Medicare Clients – Mental Health Care Plan

Rebates are available through Medicare with an accompanying Mental Health Care Plan from your General Practitioner (GP). Medicare rebates are available for up to 10 individual psychological services in a calendar year (January to December). After an initial group of six services, the referring GP will conduct a review of the need for further services before a further four services may be provided.

Private Health Insurance

If you do not have a Mental Health Care Plan or have already accessed your sessions for the calendar year through the Mental Health Care Plan, you may also be eligible for a rebate from your private health insurance fund. Please call your fund directly to find out your individual entitlements.

Cancellations

It is appreciated if at least 24 hours notice is given for cancellations or rescheduling of appointments. We will remind you of appointments via email or SMS. You will be asked which reminder method you prefer when you check in for your first appointment.

After Hours

Some after hours or early morning appointments are available. Please note however that we are not a crisis service and for any immediate support required please call Lifeline 131 114, attend your nearest emergency hospital, or call the Mental Health Emergency Response Line on 1300 555 788 (24hrs, 7 days a week).

Confidentiality and Privacy

Registered Psychologists must provide services in accordance with the Psychology Board of Australia, AHPRA and Australian Psychological Society ethical guidelines on professional practice. All due care is taken to ensure any information you provide is treated in accordance with industry guidelines.

As part of a psychological service to you we will need to collect and record personal information from you that is relevant to your situation. Your records are kept secure and are not released to a third party without your approval unless this arrangement is part of the referral agreement. Note that all Medicare referrals require a brief report on progress which is forwarded to your referring GP. On completion of the first six services, the psychologist must provide a written report to the referring GP, which includes information on:

• assessments carried out on the client
• treatment provided; and
• recommendations on future management of the client’s disorder

A written report must also be provided to the referring medical practitioner at the completion of the second set of four services provided to the client. If you have questions about this area please discuss them at the first session. You will be given the opportunity to ask any questions regarding your treatment, confidentiality issues, storage of information, fees etc at your first appointment prior to beginning your session.

The psychological service provided is bound by the legal requirements of the Australian Privacy Principles set out in the Privacy Act 1988 (amended 2014). Clients will be provided with a copy of the terms of privacy and data management upon request.

To find out more about the Disclosure of Personal Information and Requests for Access and Correction to Patient Information, please click on the following links:

Disclosure of Personal Information

Requests for Access and Correction to Patient Information