FAQ | Eastern Shore Psychology

DO I NEED A MENTAL HEALTH CARE PLAN?

Whilst you don't require a Mental Health Care Plan to see one of our clinicians, it does turn out to be cheaper for you in the long run.

We do however, accept standard referrals from GPs and you are more than welcome to see a clinician with out one.

You can also use your Private Health insurance as some do cover psychology sessions.

HOW LONG DOES EACH THERAPY SESSION TAKE?

WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

First session, you can expect that there will probably be quite a few questions asked about your history and why you're here.

People feel a range of different emotions when they first present! Nervous, apprehensive, excited, hopeful etc. Obviously there's no right or wrong way to feel, but we absolutely hope to make your feel at ease as soon as you walk in. You've taken an incredible step towards getting this far already. So, join us, see what you think and we're pretty sure it won't be as bad as what you think ;)

WHAT DO I NEED TO BRING?

50 minutes

HOW MANY SESSIONS WILL I NEED?

We can't tell you how many you will need, as that varies considerably, from person to person.

However, the research suggests that for 52% of the population to obtain a benefit from sessions (that's not full recovery) they will need 8-14 sessions.

For 70% of the population to improve, they will need 20+ sessions and for complex and entrenched issues, 100+

As a general rule, it's good to start with the idea of 10 sessions and review from there. Generally, sessions are weekly or fortnightly initially, is best, depending on how much support you would like. And then after a few months, sessions can reduce in frequency. This does depend on clinician availability too.

Sometimes, once people finish sessions, in future years, other things can crop up and a few sessions might be needed again, to touch base and refresh on strategies learned previously.

So, there's no clear answer. But please feel free to say exactly what you think you need and let us know, if at any point you don't feel like it's helpful or if you want to increase of decrease frequency of sessions :)

We have most likely received your Mental Health Care Plan from your GP. But if you can double check with your surgery first to see if they have sent one over that would be great. If not, please bring in a hard copy.

For Workers Compensation claims we would appreciate it if you could bring the relevant paperwork and/or claim number, insurance information, contact person etc.

DO YOU BULK BILL?

Unfortunately, no. We are not a bulk billing service and at this stage we are unable to offer lower rates for those on either Pension or Health Care Cards.

WHAT MENTAL
HEALTH DIAGNOSES ARE COVERED UNDER A MENTAL HEALTH CARE PLAN?

The Medicare initiative covers a number of conditions including: psychotic disorders, schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, phobic disorders, anxiety disorder, adjustment disorder, depression, sexual disorders, conduct disorders, bereavement disorders, post traumatic stress disorder, eating disorders, panic disorder, alcohol use disorder, drug use disorder, sleep problems, attention deficit disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and co-occurring anxiety and depression.