Our skilled Hobart therapists are ready to support you when life’s challenges are causing everything to unravel
We know life can be full of emotional challenges.
That’s why we’re here to help guide you through these times of difficulty. We want you to feel heard, understood, and safe.
Above all, we’re here so you don’t have to face these challenges alone or unsupported.
And we can help you discover ways of moving through challenges and creating lasting change.
So, what makes us different?
We understand that all people and all problems are unique.
That’s why we don’t believe in a ‘one size fits all’ approach to therapy.
We’ll take the time to get to know you. And then tailor a treatment plan to help you tackle the challenges that are holding you back.
What’s more, our team of friendly therapists are real people...
Which means they know first-hand the bumps of life. And they’re specifically trained and experienced in handling a range of issues.
How can we help?
Parenting support
We offer support to parents for a range of issues, including mental health support pre- and post-birth (perinatal mental health), parent-child relationship support, parenting approaches to support you and your child, and difficult family matters. Scroll down to read more about our Be My Co-Therapist™ way of working.
General psychology
Our experienced team offers counselling for a wide range of emotional issues, such as anxiety, stress, depression, adjustment issues, workplace stress, trauma, and resolving past hurts of family or other relationships. We also provide personal therapy for mental health clinicians, and for play therapy students working towards their registration requirements.
Emergency Services
We support Tasmanian Emergency Service personnel and first responders, including their families and children, with issues related to trauma-exposure and post-traumatic stress, and the general impacts of this work on personal life. Ambulance Tasmania staff are able to make contact directly without the need for a referral. DPFEM staff usually require a referral letter from your Wellbeing Support unit.
WorkCover
If you’ve experienced a workplace incident or injury, including mental health related injuries (such as chronic stress, burnout, or a toxic work environment), we can help. We accept WorkCover referrals to assist you through your recovery process.
Be My Co-Therapist™
Children develop in the context of their attachment relationships, and the most effective change occurs for children when their important adults are involved in the change process.
So our model of care actively engages parents/caregivers as our co-therapist – Be My Co-TherapistTM.
In addition to your child’s therapy appointments, we regularly schedule separate parent/caregiver sessions. Our goal is to resource YOU to apply specific therapeutic approaches at home, that are consistent with our goals in therapy.
You don’t have to go on hoping that things will get better on their own
We know that a little bit of support can go a long way when life gets tough.
If you think our team would be a good fit for you, contact us today.
Please note that we accept referrals Australia wide for Telehealth services.
Here’s what people often ask us when accessing our services:
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In short, no. Anyone can self-refer to our counselling services at any time. However, if you’d like to access the Medicare rebate for psychology sessions, you’ll need a referral from your GP.
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A GP Mental Health Care Plan (also referred to as a Mental Health Treatment Plan) is a documented plan developed by your GP to assist with mental health issues.
The GP will need to make a diagnosis of your mental health condition, and write a plan for how this will be supported. When your GP has lodged the plan via Medicare, your access to Medicare rebates for psychology sessions under the Medicare Better Access program will be activated.
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Yes. A Mental Health Care Plan is different to - and separate from - a referral (though many GPs like to forward the MHCP to us).
Because of the firm Medicare rules, if you wish to claim a Medicare rebate the most important thing we need from your GP (or Psychiatrist) is a Letter of Referral.
This letter of referral needs to:
State your eligible mental health diagnosis under the Medicare Better Access Program; AND
State how many sessions they would like you to attend. GPs can only refer for up to 6 sessions at a time, after which you’ll need to provide us with a new referral letter.
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When you have a MHCP (see above), the session fee you pay us for your session may be eligible for a Medicare rebate. As per the set guidelines of Medicare, the rebate amounts vary according to the capacity of our therapists.
The current Medicare rebates for our clinicians are:
Katherine Olejniczak: $89.65
Jana Panagakos: No rebate available (not an eligible Medicare Provider)
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Due to COVID-19, the Australian Government has increased the number of psychology sessions eligible for a Medicare rebate to 20 per calendar year (up from 10 sessions), effective until 30 June 2022.
On the 1st of January every year, the number of available sessions returns to zero, and individuals are now eligible for the full number of Medicare rebates again.
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Session fees vary depending on the clinician. Our current fee schedule is:
Katherine Olejniczak, Director, Principal Psychologist, Registered Play Therapist: $280
Jana Panagakos, Children’s Counsellor / Play Therapist: $185
Unfortunately, Jana’s services are not eligible for a Medicare rebate at this time. However, her fees have been intentionally set at a lower rate so her services, even without the rebate, are on par with our other therapists.
Please Note: We’re unable to offer a bulk-billing service. Fees are payable at the time of the consultation. To access a Medicare rebate, you’ll need to lodge a claim following full payment of your session.
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Absolutely. Contact your insurer to check if your policy covers mental health support.
Your session fee will need to be paid in full at the time of the consultation, then you can process the receipt directly with your private health insurance provider to claim your rebate.
Please Note: Private health insurers cannot cover the Medicare gap fee. Rebates can only be claimed from either Medicare or your health insurer - not both.
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Yes, we welcome third party referrals from organisations, such as the Emergency Services (Ambulance Tasmania, DPFEM), WorkCover, and MAIB.
In these cases, your sessions will be covered and there’ll be no out-of-pocket costs for you to pay. The number of sessions covered will vary depending on the arrangement of the third party.
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All sessions are 50 minutes.
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If you need to cancel or change your appointment, please give us as much notice as possible.
Any cancellations made with 25-48 hours’ notice will incur a cancellation fee equal to 50% of the full session fee. Cancellations made with 24 hours notice or less, including missed appointments, will be charged at the full session fee.
Please Note: Our appointments run to a schedule. Which means if you arrive late for your session, your appointment will still finish at the scheduled time and the full fee still applies.