You do not need a referral for any of our services – individual therapy or groups.  A referral and/or mental health care plan is required if you wish to claim a rebate through Medicare.

You will need to make an appointment with your GP to discuss the option of a Mental Health Care Plan under the Better Access to Mental Health Initiative.  There are certain criteria and presenting problems that your GP will assess to determine your eligibility for a Mental Health Care Plan.

A valid Mental Health Care Plan enables a client to attend a session with a psychologist and then claim from Medicare a partial rebate for the cost of this service.  A Medicare rebate will be available for a maximum of 10 individual services AND up to 10 group therapy services per calendar year.

A Mental Health Care Plan is issued for an authorised number of sessions (maximum 6).  After the initial group of sessions, the psychologist will provide a written report back to the referring practitioner.  The client must then make an appointment to review the plan with the doctor.  A further 4 sessions can then be authorised if necessary.

Yes, Psychiatrists and Paediatricians are able to directly refer clients for allied mental health services and these services are then eligible for a Medicare rebate.

Please refer to the following fact sheet with regards to Mental Health Care Plans:

APS Medicare Fact Sheet

Medicare rebates are payable up to a maximum of 10 individual sessions per calendar year.  If you do require additional sessions with your psychologist, no further Medicare rebates can be claimed.  You may be able to make a claim for psychology sessions on your ancillary benefits if you are a private health fund member.

Yes, if you have a copy of your plan, and you have still have sessions available (maximum 10 per calendar year) you can use an existing plan.  We do request a referral to Diverse Minds Psychology from your GP to accompany the existing plan.

Our reception will also need to check with Medicare to ascertain how many visits you have used with your previous psychologist in the current calendar year.  You may be asked to consult with your GP for a review of your existing plan if 6 sessions have already been used.

No, you may only claim from either Medicare or a Private health fund for each session.  Private Heath will not contribute towards the ‘gap’ between the Medicare rebate and the consultation fees.  Your receipt will have a code specific to either Medicare or Private Health depending on your requirements.

Some private health funds cover psychology sessions.  The benefit payable to members of private health funds varies according to the level of ancillary or extras cover.   It is best to contact your provider directly to check your eligibility and for the rebate information.

Medicare pays rebates of between $84.80 and $124.50 depending on whether the treating psychologist is a Clinical Psychologist or Registered Psychologist.  You will need to contact your private health fund to enquire as to the rebate paid under your specific level of cover.

Our reception staff are happy to provide the codes you would require if you would like to obtain a quote from your fund and will also be able to assist as to which rebate applies to your treating psychologist.

No, we can process either the Private Health rebate or the Medicare rebate at reception following your consultation.

For claims through private health, you will need your private health card.  Our Hi-caps system will process the claim on the spot.  The remaining gap between fund payment and the consultation fee is then settled by the client.

With Medicare rebates – the consultation must be paid for in full first.  Our Hi-caps system will process the Medicare rebate directly back into your account if you have bank account details registered with Medicare.  An Eftpos card that is linked to your bank account is required for this process.

An Initial consultation is a 90 minute consultation for a new client who would like to meet with a psychologist to discuss current issues and/or concerns and talk about strategies and goals for therapy and/or a treatment plan.  Some background information will be discussed to assist the psychologist in understanding the current difficulties and plan for ongoing sessions if required.

A Diagnostic Assessment is an appointment for a client who wants to know if they (or a child) meet the diagnostic criteria for Autism Spectrum (or related) Condition.  Our assessment process is very thorough and is tailored to the specific requirements of each client.  Generally the assessment begins with a 2 hour consultation.  A review or feedback appointment is the final part of the process and is scheduled a few weeks after the initial meeting to discuss the assessment results.

In between these appointments ‘collateral’ information may be sought from a child’s school, another parent/carer and/or other professionals in order to assist in the diagnostic process.  Consent from the client is obtained in order to facilitate this.  A diagnostic report may also be requested following the completion of the assessment process.  Please be aware there is an additional cost on diagnostic reports.

Steve Den-Kaat is the Clinic Director of Diverse Minds Psychology.   Steve will consult with the majority of new clients for their initial appointment.  If on-going therapy is recommended, he will then decide who the best psychologist would be to work with that client.  Steve has very limited availability and a wait-list for on-going clients.

In his role as Clinic Director and leader of the Diverse Minds team, Steve reviews clients regularly as part of their treatment plan.  Steve supervises the team at Diverse Minds and in this way he can ensure that all clients are receiving the very best care and up to date treatments at all times.

If you have a valid mental health care plan and your doctor has authorised group sessions on this plan (in addition to individual sessions) then a Medicare rebate for group therapy may be available.  Medicare rebates for group sessions are only claimable if a group has between 6-10 participants.  Wherever possible we structure our groups to enable eligibility for Medicare rebates (although this cannot be guaranteed).