ETHOS PSYCHOLOGY

You can make an appointment at your earliest convenience and you do not need a referral. However, you may wish to obtain a Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) and referral letter from your GP to receive a significant Medicare rebate from your psychology sessions.

Please send your MHCP and referral letter to admin@ethospsychology.org or faxed to (03) 9923 2734. Alternatively, you can request your GP to send this to us directly.

A referral to see a psychologist is not required. However, if you would like to utilise the Medicare Benefits Scheme and receive a rebate on your psychology sessions then you will need to arrange this with your GP, Psychiatrist or Paediatrician. They will prepare a Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) or Eating Disorder Plan and referral letter for you.

It is often best to book a double appointment when you visit your GP for a MHCP or EDP. You can let reception know the purpose of your appointment and they will allocate a sufficient appointment time.

A Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) is a type of referral written by a doctor, which allows for Medicare entitlements on psychology sessions.

Clients are able to access 10 Medicare subsidised sessions per calendar year on a MHCP and referral letter written by their GP. Clients can access 6 psychological therapy sessions receiving a Medicare rebate and once those sessions have been used, your requested to revisit your GP for a MHCP Review. This allows you to access the remaining 4 subsidised sessions, which totals 10 subsidised sessions per calendar year.

Clients that are eligible can obtain an Eating DisorderPlan (EDP) from their GP or Psychiatrist, which allows access to up to 40 psychology sessions per calendar year through the Medicare Benefits Scheme.

After 10 psychology sessions, the client is required to revisit their GP to access an additional 10 sessions.

After 20 psychology sessions have been used an independent review is required. This is completed by a GP, Psychiatrist or Paediatrician. As a consideration for continuity of care, the Psychiatrist, GP or Paediatrician can conduct the review prior to the 20th session with their psychologist. The independent review allows for access to an additional 10 sessions and the GP is able to conduct an EDP Review after 30 psychology sessions until the total number of sessions has been used (40).

Some private health insurances cover a rebate per session. Check with your provider for more information on this as each insurance cover varies.

We process your Medicare rebate on your behalf after the session has been paid for. You should receive the rebate within 1-2 business days to your nominated bank account registered with Medicare.

Alternatively, rebates can be claimed by: using the Medicare App, sending your receipt along with a Medicare Claim Form or visiting your local Medicare Office.

We are a full fee paying private practice and unfortunately do not Bulk Bill or accept DVA or Health Care Cards. We can assist you with alternatives for lower fee options.

We accept NDIS clients that are Plan Managed or Self Managed and do not accept NDIS clients that are Agency managed through the NDIA.

Plan Managed: The invoices for each session are sent to the Plan Manager who manages the client's NDIS funds and then reconciles the invoice.

Self Managed: The clients have access to their NDIS funds and they manage their funds with providers accordingly. This is paid at the practice through our the eftpos machine.

We require NDIS clients to have an inclusion of 8 hours of funding dedicated to psychological assessment and/or report writing time ($1715.28) prior to entering into an NDIS Provider Agreement with the Psychologist.

Some of our team are experienced psychologists and see children above the age of 6 year old. They’re able to identify the underlying issues around your child’s difficulties and guide you in the right direction.

Please contact our Administration Team to find out more information.

Unfortunately it is the private practice policy that our psychologists aren’t contactable for therapy via email, phone call or text unless this is individually arranged with your psychologist outside of business hours. This is often for an agreed risk scenario issue.

Please note that it’s often best to work in collaboration with your psychologist in session because therapy is unable to be conducted in written form (text or email) and in between sessions.

If you need to see your psychologist sooner, please contact our Administration Team via phone or email so that they can notify the psychologist and put you on their waitlist for an earlier appointment should a cancelled or rescheduled session become available.

If your concern is urgent then please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14, visit your GP or your closest Emergency Department (ED) in the interim.

A Registered Psychologist with General Registration can be endorsed in an approved area of practice such as Clinical Psychology. The endorsed Psychologist has completed an approved post graduate qualification, supervised training in the area of practice and can use the protected title associated with that area of practice e.g., Clinical Psychologist.

A Registered Psychologist has completed the registration requirements for General Registration to work in any area of Psychology that is within their scope of practice. They meet the education and training where they’ve been assessed as a suitable person for the profession and are able to use the title “Psychologist”.

A Provisional Psychologist is in their final year of placement towards receiving full General Registration. They are highly skilled and work under the guidance of a Board Approved Supervisor.

Ethos Psychology believes that everyone should have access to counselling and have added a lower cost psychological service. The Provisional Psychologists are able to provide low fee counselling with an immediate start.

Yes we offer after hours appointments on weekdays with the last appointment being from 5-6pm and 6-7pm upon request.

Payments can be made via eftpos at the end of your session with your Psychologist. If your attendance is via Telehealth then your Psychologist will process your payment via credit card with our secure payment system. To engage with our services, we require that you enter your credit card details into our secure system when you complete your Client Confidential Registration Form.

To avoid an appointment fee, Ethos Psychology requires 24 - 48 hours’ notice if you cannot attend your booked appointment. 50% of the session fee will be charged outside of 48 hours notice and 100% of the session fee will be charged outside of 24 hours or on the day notice is received. A cancellation with a Provisional Psychologist will incur the full fee for the session outside of 48 hours notice. Irrespective of the reason, this appointment fee includes cancellations, rescheduling or failure to attend your booked appointment. Amendments to appointments must be made via phone or email. This applies to individual and group sessions.

Ethos Psychology follows this cancellation policy to ensure that enough time is given to offer the appointment time to another client on our waiting lists and to the Psychologist for the psychological service offered. If less than 48 hours’ notice is provided, other clients are unable to obtain the psychological service that they require. Medicare and in most cases private health insurers do not provide rebates for cancellation or no attendance fees.

Clients are able to request to be put on their psychologist’s waitlist for an earlier appointment should a cancellation or rescheduled session become available. Our Administration Team will make contact with you via phone or text to let you know of the availability. Please respond to this contact as soon as possible because it can only be held for a short while.

Please contact our Administration team via phone or email to find out more about the our Group Therapy schedule.

Current Group Therapy sessions:

Trauma Aware Movement Group

Attendance for on-site face to face appointments resume and Telehealth (video or phone) services remain an option for care delivery where these services are provided as preferred.

As of 1 January 2023, the Medicare subsidised sessions will return to 10 sessions per calendar year on a Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) and referral letter from your GP, Psychiatrist or Paediatrician.

During COVID-19 clients were able to access 20 sessions of psychological therapy that included an additional 10 sessions. The government announced that this was a temporary service offered during the pandemic.

A diagnosed Eating Disorder qualified for an Eating Disorder Plan (EDP) for 40 Medicare subsidised psychological therapy sessions per calendar year.

Yes. Please mention this to your Psychologist during your session or contact our Administrative Team who can assist you with this documentation.

We provide formalised psychological assessments for the purposes of Diagnostic Clarification.

Should you require a report for legal purposes we will refer you to our colleagues that are specialised Forensic Psychologists who are better able to meet your needs.

We request that upon your engagement with our services that you disclose of any legal proceedings so that we can better address your concerns.

Our psychologists are able to provide you with this specific documentation and comes with additional fees. Please discuss this with your psychologist to gain clarity around your request.

Your GP is also able to write supporting documentation for you.

We understand that you may experience some apprehension around your initial session with your psychologist and you’re welcome to bring a support person with you to wait in the reception area. However psychological therapy is often individualised where we conduct one to one sessions to maintain privacy and confidentiality for best treatment outcomes.

Should you wish to engage in Family Based Therapy or Relationship Counselling then we are able to provide you with alternate options for service.

We prioritise the therapeutic relationship and understand that it may not feel like the right fit from the beginning. We want the best for your treatment so please let our Administration Team know of your concerns to allocate you to another psychologist.

It is recommend to have a direct conversation with the psychologist about your concerns, as they openly offer this to you. They remain supportive in the reallocation and handover processes where we want what’s in your best interests.

As part of providing a psychological service to you, Ethos Psychology needs to collect and record personal information from you that is relevant to your situation, such as your name, contact information, medical history and other relevant information as part of providing psychological services to you. This collection of personal information will be a necessary part of the psychological assessment and treatment that is conducted.

A detailed description of how your personal information is managed, how you can access your personal information, and how to lodge any concerns or complaints about this service or how your personal information is managed must be provided to you by your health professional on request.

Personal and Confidential Information:

Personal information gathered as part of this service will remain confidential except when:

1. It is subpoenaed by a court; or

2. Failure to disclose the information would place you or another person at serious risk to life, health or safety; or

3. Your prior approval has been obtained to

a) Provide a written report to another professional or agency e.g. a GP or a lawyer; or b) Discuss the material with another person, e.g. a parent, employer or health provider; or c) Disclose the information in another way; or

4. You would reasonably expect your personal information to be disclosed to another professional or agency (e.g. your GP) and disclosure of your personal information to that third party is for a purpose which is directly related to the primary purpose for which your personal information was collected; or 5. Disclosure is otherwise required or authorised by law.

Provision of a Telehealth Service

Where appropriate the service may be provided by telephone or videoconferencing. You are responsible for the costs associated with setting up the technology needed so you can access Telehealth services. Ethos Psychology will be responsible for the cost of the call to you and the cost associated with the platform used to conduct Telehealth services.

To access Telehealth consultations you will need access to a quiet, private space; and the appropriate device, i.e. smartphone, laptop, iPad, computer, with a camera, microphone and speakers; and a reliable broadband Internet connection.

The privacy of any form of communication via the Internet is potentially vulnerable and limited by the security of the technology used. To support the security of your personal information this practice uses Zoom or FaceTime, which is compliant with the Australian standards for online security and encryption.

Limitations of Telehealth

A Telehealth consultation may be subject to limitations such as an unstable network connection, which may affect the quality of the psychology session. In addition, there may be some services for which Telehealth is not appropriate or effective. Your Psychologist will consider and discuss with you the appropriateness of ongoing Telehealth sessions.

Fees

The cost of a consultation (clinical hour 50-55 minutes) is $220 (Registered Psychologist) and $265 (Clinical Psychologist), which is payable at the end of the session by Eftpos or Direct Deposit by Bank Transfer. Your Psychologist will discuss with you about your eligibility for Medicare or other compensable funding.

Appointment Fee Policy:

To avoid an appointment fee, Ethos Psychology requires 24 - 48 hours’ notice if you cannot attend your booked appointment. 50% of the session fee ($110) will be charged outside of 48 hours notice and 100% of the session fee ($220) will be charged outside of 24 hours or on the day notice is received. A cancellation with a Provisional Psychologist will incur the full fee outside of 48 hours notice. Irrespective of the reason, this appointment fee includes cancellations, rescheduling or failure to attend your booked appointment. Amendments to appointments must be made via phone or email.

Ethos Psychology follows this cancellation policy to ensure that enough time is given to offer the appointment time to another client on our waiting lists and to the Psychologist for the psychological service offered. If less than 48 hours’ notice is provided, other clients are unable to obtain the psychological service that they require. Medicare and in most cases private health insurers do not provide rebates for cancellation or no attendance fees.

I accept that I will be charged if I do not give 48 hours’ notice to cancel, reschedule or do not attend my appointment. I consent to providing my details to Ethos Psychology to take payment for this fee incurred by me.

Consent to Receive Psychological Services by Telehealth

I have been provided with information about the service including the limitations to privacy and confidentiality and I have agreed that in circumstances where the Psychologist is concerned about my welfare and is unable to contact me permission is provided for the Psychologist to contact the following person: