The following information will help you to select and to access private practitioners.
What are Private Practitioners? | Accessing Private Practitioners
Professionals that work in private practice and provide mental health services are referred to on this website as "private practitioners". The following are descriptions of private practitioners that provide mental health care...
General Practitioner (GP) - a person with medical qualifications (a Doctor) who provides a broad range of medical services to the majority of the population (as opposed to providing specialist medical services). Some GPs do more work in mental health than others and some have undertaken additional mental health training - you will need to ask individual GPs about their background in mental health. GPs play an important role in coordinating a person's mental health care and providing ongoing regular contact. They are also the most appropriate professional to manage the physical health care of people with a mental illness.
Psychologist - a person with university qualifications and supervised experience in psychology. Their training includes human behaviour, life span development, research processes, cognition/thinking, the brain and the nervous system, therapy/counselling, philosophy, the social aspects of behaviour and many other psychology related areas. A psychologist in private practice focuses on counselling/therapy as the major part of the healing process and is not qualified to prescribe medication.
Psychiatrist - a person with medical qualifications (a Doctor) who has additional specialist qualifications in psychiatry. As a result, psychiatrists generally have more of a medical approach to their work, and are able to prescribe medication as well as provide counselling/therapy.
Social Worker - a person with university qualifications in social work which involves a thorough understanding of, and skills in, working with people in the context of their environment and social systems, to promote problem solving within relationships, empowerment for individuals and social change. Mental Health Social Workers help individuals with mental health problems to resolve associated psychosocial issues and improve their quality of life. This may involve family as well as individual counselling, and group therapy. Social Workers cannot prescribe medication
Counsellor – a person who relies on language and conversation within a professional relationship to facilitate change in individuals, families and/or groups. Counsellors are required to be registered with the Australian Register of Counsellors and Psychotherapists an independent, national, professional self-regulatory body to ensure ethical practice and conduct within the profession. Practice standards for Mental Health Practitioners have been developed for Counsellors engaged in primary roles involving treatment and support to people with a mental illness. Counsellors are trained at undergraduate and post-graduate level, and are required to engage in ongoing supervision of their clinical practice.
Other - there are many people who have qualifications in a different field (eg. Nutritionists, Teachers) who may also be able to provide counselling. Their qualifications alone do not necessarily indicate any comprehensive training in counselling/therapy. However, many of these professionals have completed additional training in counselling and/or psychology.
It is a good idea to discuss your mental health issues with your GP and they will be able to guide you to the most suitable private practitioner. Click here (pdf) to access a list of General Practices on the Sunshine Coast.
However, to see a private practising Psychologist, Social Worker or other therapist, you do not usually need a referral. Payment is made on a fee-for-service basis and may be covered under private health insurance - check this with the professional you choose to see. You can also get a GP referral to a Psychologist, Social Worker or other therapist that may reduce the cost significantly - for more information, read the description of the Australian Government's Better Access Initiative below.
The following websites contain lists of mental health service providers in private practice:
http://www.beyondblue.org.au
http://www.depressionservices.org.au
http://www.psychology.org.au
To see a Psychiatrist, you will need to obtain a referral from a GP. For more information about psychiatry, please see the following link:
http://www.ranzcp.org/index.php
Under the Australian Government's Better Access Initiative, Medicare rebates are available for up to twelve individual therapy sessions (and twelve group sessions) per calendar year with a psychologist, social worker and occupational therapist. To receive this rebate, you need your GP to write a referral and complete a Mental Health Care Plan (MBS Item 2710). When you take this information to the Psychologist/Social Worker/Occupational Therapist, they will explain the payment process. For most of these services, you will need to pay the full fee and claim the refund from Medicare, however, some services do bulk-bill. Medicare rebates can be around $90, so this will make a significant difference to the cost of seeing a therapist. It is important to be aware that if you use this process, there will be a record on your health file that the GP has completed a Mental Health Care Plan.
