Telehealth Psychology for Children?
My children need help, can they access Telehealth Psychology?
The answer is: YES!
We provide child therapy by Telehealth around the world!
Being an Australia-based practice, during this Coronavirus (COVID19) crisis, at NEWSTART Psychology & Counselling we Medicare Bulkbill all our individual Child Therapy Appointments for Australians using Telehealth with the appropriate Australian GP Referral and Mental Health Care Plan
When COVID-19 moved into Australia, clinicians started to think about how this might affect the well-being of out clients and the day to day work with our clients. Telehealth isn’t new, and we all have degree of experience with online sessions, but this has mostly been with adults. Face to face therapy with children is often a far more interactive experience than adult therapy, including different materials, lots more physical activity, and a lot of time spent on the floor.
What a relief it was to many to know that research demonstrates that we can continue to meet our clients needs… yes, our children client needs. If you were having doubts or feeling worried about if your child could still access their therapy if it was online, keep reading below for three tips that can make this possible, effective, and enjoyable.
Individual Therapy
Couples Therapy
Group Therapy
So, you are a parent or caregiver, what does child therapy by telehealth mean? How could this be made effective?
by Olivia Boer – Clinical Psychologist (adapted)
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Parents can, and will often need to be involved. You may be the technical issues manager, sibling container, email coordinator, co-therapist, material supplier, or child-retriever (if they wander off to the bathroom and forget we were mid-session), parents will have an important role here. We also want to know how you are going with parenting under more stress or coping if your family is isolated – all these things affect children’s emotional wellbeing as well as their behaviour. Just like in face to face therapy, we can help with all this.
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It’s also important to know that online therapy with kids is not like a 50-minute FaceTime call. It’s often more structured. We will still be moving, we will still be using craft, drawing on a whiteboard, playing card and board games, or playing with soft toys, puppets, and dolls. Kids will have an opportunity to show their therapist their own safe spaces, their favourite toys, their favourite online content, their parent who often can’t come to sessions, and their pets.
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Therapists will help their child clients adjust to a new way of doing therapy, but often kids surprise everyone – they are already comfortable with using technology and might even prefer it! The most common concern they often have is coming to terms with the fact their therapist doesn’t actually live at their office (if the therapist is working from home). It’s often us as adults who feel more uncomfortable, but this isn’t a reason to not continue with your child’s therapy. Continuity of mental health care is incredibly important, and as much as you are trying to protect them, your child is currently facing stress and uncertainty too.
Dr Dan’s Experience with Children
Senior Clinician in Private & Public Health Sectors
Experienced in Child and Youth Mental Health, Child and Family Health, and Paediatric Services, Dr Dan is available to see children with mood struggles, anxiety and worries, stress, school suspensions, behaviour management concerns, and chronic health conditions. Support related to struggles due to being in isolation, lockdown, or quarantine is also available.
Getting Started is Easy
Chat with Dan about your child's needs at dan@newstrtpsych.com.au
Book an Appointment at
admin@newstartpsych.com.au
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