What usually happens in the first session?

Psychology treatment usually begins with an assessment to gain an understanding of the young person and their/their parent’s concerns, so that we can figure out how best to help.  For children and younger adolescents, this often involves time with the parent(s) and child together, time alone with the child (if they are primary-school age or older and only if the child and family are comfortable with this), and time alone with the parents.  Some parents, especially those with younger children, prefer to attend alone for the first session to discuss their concerns, and make plans from there.  Adolescent and young adult clients always attend the first appointment, and we encourage them to decide themselves whether they would be more comfortable coming into the office alone or with their parent(s) to start.  We value working collaboratively and appreciate the involvement of parents and family members, and make sure we do this in a way that allows our adolescent clients to feel comfortable in engaging with us.

The assessment involves getting to know each other.  We usually have many questions to ask and we are happy for you to ask questions too.  When we first meet with children, the assessment usually involves doing activities with them to get to know them and to gain an understanding of how we can help.  For example, we usually do drawings and play relevant games, as well as talking and other playful activities.

We will suggest a plan for how we can help improve the things you want to improve, and together we will make a decision about the best place to start.

What should I tell my child about seeing a clinical psychologist?

In preparation for bringing your child to see us, it is very helpful for you to talk with your child in a positive way about coming to see us.  We would encourage you to tell your child about the appointment and your reason for the visit, in words that your child can understand.  You might like to tell your child their clinical psychologist’s name and what a psychologist does.  For example, that a psychologist is like a doctor but one who helps children with the way that they are feeling (they don’t give needles, but they help children and families deal with sad or scary feelings, or to solve problems that are bothering them).  You might like to let them know what you believe we can help your family with, again telling them this in a positive way, showing confidence and perhaps enthusiasm.  Answer their questions honestly in ways they can understand, and reassure them that lots of children and teenagers see psychologists for these same reasons.  It is also helpful to let them know what usually happens in the first appointment (see above) and reassure them that they won’t have to say or do anything that they don’t want to do.  Some children also like to see their psychologist’s photo on the website to know what we look like.

For older children/young adolescents, you might find it helpful to read our “youth page” on this website together with them, as it will help them to know what to expect.  Older adolescents may prefer to read this themselves, but may like to discuss with you their thoughts and feelings about coming to see us.

Who attends the appointments?

This depends on the family and reason for coming to see us.  Sometimes we work with parents or guardians, sometimes with children or young people, and sometimes with families (or some of the family).  Sometimes we discuss recommendations and ideas with school, kinder or creche staff, or other professionals who work with your child/adolescent.  We will suggest a plan and discuss it together with you at your first appointment.  We are also happy to answer questions prior to booking an appointment to help you decide whether we are the right service for you.

How does confidentiality work if you see my child without me?

Privacy and confidentiality are very important to us.  If you decide to book an appointment, or if you would like this information prior to booking an appointment, we will email you our detailed confidentiality and privacy policies to consider and sign prior to commencing.  We do not release information that you or your child share with us to any other people without your consent as the parent, though there are some important exceptions to this that we outline in our policy (that is, where we are concerned about risk of harm to yourself, your child, or an identifiable other, or if the information is subpoenaed).

When our clients are preschool-aged children, we generally only see them with a parent or guardian present and involved in the sessions, so parents are aware of all the information being shared.  For older children, it may be beneficial for them to spend some time alone with their clinical psychologist at some stage, only if and when the child and family are comfortable with this.  If children spend some time in session alone with their psychologist, confidentiality also applies for them as clients, in that we would check with them before we share specific information they have shared with us, even with parents (though there are still the same exceptions, such as when there are concerns about risk of harm).  A certain level of confidentiality is required in order to build a trusting and therapeutic relationship with a child, which is necessary for effective psychological treatment.  It can also ensure a safe space where children can share their worries and concerns without fearing negative consequences from others.  Please be assured that we are happy to provide parents with general feedback and we aim to keep parents informed and involved in the therapy work, especially when we are working with children.  We believe it is important to share information with parents to help them understand the work children are doing in therapy, how they can help support this work at home, their child’s progress, as well as any other specific feedback likely to be helpful for the child and family.  We do this in consultation with the child to protect confidentiality, while working over time to ensure that parents are provided with all the information that is important for them to know.  For example, we often provide feedback to parents of primary-school aged children together with the child towards the end of any child session.

When working alone with adolescents, it is important that any feedback to parents is carefully negotiated with the young person wherever possible.  Please see the youth page to see how we explain confidentiality to adolescents (or for more details see the youth consent form which will be emailed when an appointment is booked, or prior on request).

We encourage all parents to let us know if they would like additional time with us (either alone or together with their child and other family members) to discuss any concerns or seek further feedback.

Our privacy and confidentiality policies are outlined in detail in the consent form that you will be emailed and asked to sign.  Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns regarding these policies.

My child has been referred for an autism assessment.  What does that involve?

An autism assessment is a specialised assessment that we complete over several sessions.  It includes the following:

1. Extended assessment session (100-110minutes) with parents and child.  During this session, we will observe your child, but we will also need to ask you a lot of questions so that we can collect background information and developmental history as part of the assessment.  If you prefer, we can split this session into two 55-minute sessions on different days.  If you would like some time alone providing information without your child present, you may like to bring along another adult who can bring your child out from the office for some time, and/or to split this into two 55-minute sessions (one without your child).

2. Child assessment session (55 minutes).  During this we will complete some play-based assessment tasks with your child, including the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2).

3.  Possible additional assessment session(s) if needed (eg., for a cognitive assessment, or a kinder/childcare/school observation).

4.  Phone calls to childcare/kindergarten/school and other professionals involved with the child for us to collect further information (if given your permission to do so).

5.  Questionnaires are provided for parents and teachers/carers to complete.

5.  Feedback session with parents (55 minutes) for us to provide you with feedback regarding the assessment and recommendations.

6.  An assessment report is also completed which contains detailed information about all aspects of the assessment.

Please note that a gold-standard autism assessment involves an assessment being completed by a psychologist, a paediatrician, and a speech pathologist, so it is important for us to have input from the other professionals.

My child/adolescent has been referred for a cognitive and/or educational assessment.  What does that involve?

A cognitive assessment is an assessment of intellectual ability.  It includes assessment of various different skill areas, including reasoning with and without words (verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning), processing speed, and working memory.  The assessment explores strengths and weaknesses in these areas, helping us to generate recommendations about how best to teach the child or adolescent.  It provides information required for assessment of IQ, giftedness, or learning difficulties.  The particular assessment tool we use is call the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V), or for younger children, the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI-IV).

An educational assessment is an assessment of academic skills and achievement.  It includes assessment of skills in reading, reading comprehension, spelling, and mathematics, to provide specific feedback about the child or adolescent’s current levels in the specific skill areas.  The assessment tool we use is called the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-III).  If relevant, we also use the Sutherland Phonological Awareness Test (SPAT-R) to consider pre-reading skills.

We usually schedule an extended assessment session (2-hours) to complete the discussion of background information and the cognitive assessment.  If we are also completing an educational assessment, we schedule a second extended assessment session to administer it on another day.  It is usually helpful for us to call your child’s teacher to collect information about his/her observations and assessments at school (if given your permission to do so).  We complete a full assessment report with information about our observations, the assessment results, and recommendations.  We then schedule a feedback session to discuss and explain all observations, results and recommendations.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any other questions.