We would like to reassure you that all the staff at Psychology & Wellness take confidentiality seriously. We do not share any information about you unless we have your permission, or if you are a risk to yourself or someone else. If you would like to know more about this, please discuss this with your counsellor at your appointment.

Privacy and Confidentiality: Please read this information and become aware of your rights (and the limits) to privacy, confidentiality and informed consent before your Psychology and Wellness consultation.

Will I have to pay for my consultations?

Psychology & Wellness does not charge any out-of-pocket expenses to students. However, all students must present a valid Medicare card or Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) card. You may be asked to get a Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP) from your GP for further sessions if it is indicated. Read about Mental Health Care Plans here. 

How can I get a Mental Health Care Plan?

Your GP can provide a Mental Health Care Plan (MHCP). If you don’t have a regular GP you can make an appointment at the University Health Service, or a GP of your choice. When making an appointment with your GP let them know you need a longer consultation. This will allow enough time to complete the plan.

What if I can't get a Mental Health Care Plan, or I run over the available sessions, can I still have access to a psychologist?

No student will be denied care because of limits to Medicare or OSHC. All decisions about ongoing care will be based on individual clinical need.

What do I need to bring to an appointment?
Once you have a MHCP, please give it to your psychologist at your next appointment. If your appointment is by Telehealth, you can email a copy to: [email protected] or ask your GP Service to fax it to: (02) 9385 6115.

Telehealth appointments are conducted on the phone or via video.  If you have a telephone appointment, we will call you at the scheduled time from a "No caller ID". If it is a video appointment, you will need to log into the UNSW Health & Wellbeing Student Portal to access the Zoom link. 

We would like to reassure you that our confidentiality policy remains the same for telehealth appointments. If you would like to know more about this, please discuss this with your Psychologist at your appointment.

Meeting in a virtual space for an appointment is different. To make the best of this situation, it would be helpful to keep the following in mind:

 • Organise a time to be available and be on time at the agreed time.

• Set up a private space where you are free to talk openly with your psychologist.

• Try and ensure that no third person would be present for any period of time during your video consultations (unless you have a toddler).

• No recording of any consultation or part thereof would be made without the other’s explicit and informed consent

What can you expect during a consultation with a counsellor?

Here are some FAQs to get you started. The counsellor will help you assess your situation, understand the complexities and make suggestions as to how your situation might be managed.

The counsellor might suggest any or all of the following:

• Appropriate self-access information
• Further counselling or psychotherapy
• Referral to a specialist practitioner or to a UNSW professional or academic staff member
• To see your GP for a Mental Health Care Plan

The counsellor will discuss with you how these options might assist you and you will be encouraged to explore which options seem most appropriate, useful or needed.

Registering at Psychology and Wellness prior to your consultation

After you are given a time for a consultation you will need to provide us with some information about yourself. If you are phoning in you will be asked for this information over the phone. If you are in the Psychology and Wellness office you will be asked to complete the registration information yourself. So be prepared to spend 15-20 minutes stepping through our registration process and completing a brief questionnaire.

Please note:

• Each contact with a counsellor is viewed as complete in itself. Each consultation will focus on what you would like to ‘take away’ from that particular conversation.
• The counsellor will work to ensure the consultation makes the best use of the time available.
• They will do that by clarifying what is most urgent and important and identify options and constructive steps.

Further appointments

After the initial consultation there may be a follow-up consultation. This will of course depend on your circumstances and needs.

The follow-up might be in the form of a telephone call, a meeting, or an email contact. In the follow-up contact you and the counsellor will together review the outcome of your previous consultation and what has changed or remained the same in relation to your situation, how you are managing the issues you discussed and whether or not further contact is needed. At this time your counsellor will review with you whether further meetings might be beneficial or if other services may be more appropriate.

Most consultations are for either 30 or 50 minutes. These contacts are made on an ‘as needed’ basis, one appointment at a time.

Late or cancellation?

We understand that things can come up unexpectedly. If you need to cancel your scheduled appointment, we ask that you notify us with as much notice as possible so that we can offer the time to another student. Non-attendance prevents other students in need from accessing this appointment time and increases wait times for everyone.

We offer a text reminder the day before your appointment to ensure you have enough time to notify us of any issues. In-person appointments can also be changed to telehealth if required on the day.

If you cancel at short notice or do not attend without notifying us this may reduce the sessions available to you.