Welcome

About Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy


There are dozens of options for counselling services throughout Australia, and finding the right therapist for your needs is often the key to success. Indeed, research suggests that the fit between the counsellor and client is the most significant predictor of Therapy’s success more important even than the therapists’ training, experience, or approach to treatment. You might be surprised, though, to learn that counselling isn’t just for people struggling with mental illness or major life transitions. Indeed, a therapist can help you navigate a host of issues, bringing clarity and progress to challenges.

That's where Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy can help. Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy has experience with understanding your needs and finding ways to minimize or assist in changing what is happening for you.  Bayside Counselling's goal is: to help children, adolescents, adults, and families feel strong, healthy, and peaceful from the inside-out. 

Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy's Unique Approach:

Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy combines traditional therapeutic services with comprehensive mind/body therapies. Grounded in the most current research and evidenced-based-practices, Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy has created programs to address the specific needs of those who are looking for support and understanding.  

Services:

Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy prides itself in being a one-stop-shop for your entire family’s wellness needs. Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy is here to help you strengthen your mind and body. 

Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy is recognised and registered with:
NDIS, Medicare, Department Veteran Affairs.
I also provide services for clients who wish to engage without the referral process.

IN THIS CURRENT SETTING, WHERE SOCIAL DISTANCING IS PREFERRED, ONLINE TELEHEALTH SERVICES ARE AVAILABLE.  
Please Contact Paula for more information on telehealth platforms.

Ready to take the next step?

Contact Paula on 0401 300 266 to set up your phone consultation today! 



About Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy image
​SERVICES
Welcome to Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy, your one-stop solution for all your service needs.As an Accredited Mental Health Social worker I use a range of interventions to assist individuals and families, including the following Focussed Psychological Strategies:    
1. Cognitive Behaviour therapy
2. Behavioural Interventions
3. Psycho-education (including Motivational Intervention)
4. Narrative Therapy
5. Relaxation Strategies (including Mindfulness and Meditation)
6. Problem Solving
7. Anger management
8. Social Skills
9. Stress management
10. Parenting Skills
11. Family Therapy
12. Inner Child Work
13. Walk and Talk therapy

a) NDIS provider
b) Medicare supported
c) Veterans & families (Open Arms -  https://www.openarms.gov.au/get-support/counselling)
d) EAP - Employment Assistance Program (AccessEAP - https://www.accesseap.com.au/) 
e) Health Funds
d) Clinical Supervision

Services Available

Executive Functioning Support

Could Your Child Benefit from Executive Functioning Support?

Walk & Talk Therapy

What is Walk + Talk Therapy?

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the gentle effort to be continuously present in this moment, non-judgementally.

Clinical Supervision

Clinical supervision provides opportunity for people working within the education and health setting to access a structured, confidential and supportive service that aims to extend and explore individual and or group professional development and evidence-based practice.

Telehealth Services

Welcome to the new age of Telehealth Services

Are you eligible for a Mental Health Care Plan?

 

As an Accredited Mental Health Social Worker, I am registered with Medicare. This allows you to have the option to talk with your GP about considering if it is appropriate to prepare a Mental Health Care Plan and make a referral to Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy.

 

If you are eligible, your GP will need to conduct a Mental Health Assessment with you. This is a brief report on your medical history and the main issues for which you are seeking Focused Psychological Services . 

Under a Mental Health Care Plan, you will receive up to 10 counselling sessions a year (initially 6 sessions with the opportunity to access 4 more after a review) for which you can claim a Medicare rebate.

 

Your GP will initially authorise 6 counselling / therapy sessions and will review your case once these are completed. They will then decide whether to authorise a further 4 sessions. You will then receive a rebate from Medicare for each session.

 

For your first counselling session you will need to bring your Mental Health Care Plan.


For more information on Medicare please follow this link:  https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/subjects/medicare-services

Are you eligible for a Mental Health Care Plan? image

NDIS - Are you a registered client or are you unsure where to begin?

Introduction: 

The Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW) welcomes the advent of the NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) as a rights-based approach that supports the independence and the social and economic participation of people with a permanent impairment or condition. The values of ‘choice and control’ that underpin the Scheme are consistent with the values and principles of self-determination and empowerment that have guided the social work profession for many decades.

The role of social work in the NDIS:
 
Professional social work skills and supports have historically been integral to disability services in both government and non-government organisations. Social workers have had a strong role in assessment, planning and case management across all types of disability and service provision. This is particularly because of our expertise in addressing both personal and systemic dimensions of support and intervention.
Social Workers focus on maintaining and enhancing quality of life in a range of settings to facilitate empowerment and assist people with disability, their families and communities. Our work includes all levels of management and program design, individual planning, counselling, coordination and case management, as well as policy development, research and advocacy.
The values, qualifications and skills of social workers constitute a precise match with the person-centred approach of the NDIS. Social work practice is across the life span, and this includes working with children, adults, families, carers, groups and communities. Most importantly, social workers work alongside people with disability to facilitate their empowerment (and that of their families) and achieve their needs, goals and aspirations.

Social workers are present throughout the entirety of the NDIS (see Figure 1) in varied roles, including planners, Local Area Coordinators, managers, supervisors and as registered providers.
Figure 1: Social work roles in the NDIS



Under the NDIS eligibility criteria, social workers can provide several specific supports, including:

• Therapeutic and counselling supports (individual and group)
• Early intervention supports for early childhood
• Behaviour support (assessment and development of support plans)
• Assistance in coordinating or managing life stages, transitions and supports
• Assistance to access and maintain employment or higher education
• Assistance with obtaining or retaining accommodation and tenancy
Participant booklets:

Three participant booklets are available to support people with disability and participants throughout their NDIS journey.
The first booklet in the series includes information about accessing the NDIS, including a useful eligibility checklist.
Booklet 1 – Understanding the NDIS
Booklet 1 covers:
  • Learning about the NDIS
  • Deciding whether to apply for the NDIS
  • Accessing the NDIS
  
Planning In Booklet 2: 

Understanding your current supports and preparing for your planning meeting 
  • To get ready for your meeting, think about your current supports and who provides them, and what supports and services you may need to achieve your goals. • Complete this booklet on your own or with someone’s help and bring it with you to your planning meeting. Consider any relevant reports or assessments you will need to bring with you as well. 
  • Attending a planning meeting to create your plan 
  • Learn about what will happen in your planning meeting, who you will meet with, and who you can bring along with you. 
Receiving your approved NDIS plan:
 
  • Learn how you will receive your NDIS plan, and what to do next. 
 
This booklet covers:
  1. Understanding your current supports 
  2. Creating an NDIS plan to achieve your goals 
  3. Receiving an approved NDIS plan
Booklet 2 - Planning 
BOOKLET 3: Using your NDIS plan:

Understanding what’s in your plan 
  1. Learn what the different parts of your NDIS plan mean, who can help you start using your plan and how your plan is managed. 
Learning how to use your plan 
  1. Learn how to start using your plan to achieve your goals. 
  2. Understand what you can spend your funding on, and how to find service providers. It will also tell you how you can access community and other government services outside the NDIS. 
Choosing and managing supports and services 
  1. Use this booklet to start choosing providers to deliver your supports and services. 
  2. Find out what to do if things aren’t working out or you want to try another provider. 
Reviewing your plan and progress 
  1. Use this booklet to help keep track of your goals. 
  2. Make notes about what is working in your NDIS plan and what might need to change when your plan is reviewed. 
  3. Towards the end of every plan you will need to get ready for your plan review. Start thinking about your goals, and how your plan is helping you to achieve them. You may need to think about the future goals you would like to achieve or community and other government services you may need if you no longer require support from the NDIS. 
BOOKLET 3 - Using your NDIS plan

You will receive the booklets you need during your NDIS journey, or you can access them on the NDIS website at www.ndis.gov.au
SUPERVISION
Supervision is a process of professional learning and development that enables individuals and or groups to reflect on and develop their knowledge, skills, and competence, through agreed and regular support with another professional.

Supervision is an essential aspect to continuing professional development and plays a key part in ensuring good practice and high-quality care. 

Professionals at all levels of their career will benefit from supervision, as it provides an important opportunity to reflect on your professional practice, including what went well, or not so well, and where improvements could be made.

Insurance funds - Am I Covered? 

Bupa Mental Health Coverage

HealthPoint Claims is happy to announce that Accredited Mental Health Social Workers can now claim for Bupa members through their HealthPoint terminals. PLEASE: Check with your insurance agency to ensure your policy will cover services needed.

Medibank Mental Health Coverage

https://www.medibank.com.au/help/claims/guides/how-to-claim-mental-health-social-workers/ lp and support Claims Guides How to claim - Mental Health Social Workers If your cover includes benefits for Mental Health Social Workers, you can claim for it online using the information on this page. If you're not sure whether you're eligible to claim, you can check your cover summary, as well as limits and waiting periods, on My Medibank online, or the My Medibank app. Before you start your claim for a Mental Health Social Worker, make sure you have: A digital copy of the receipt for the service/treatment, displaying the provider ID and item number, and dated within the last two years. (Note: Accepted digital file formats include: JPEG/JPG, PNG, HEIC/HEIF or PDF. A photo of the receipt is fine, as long as it's clear.) Please also review the following information: There's no waiting period on Mental Health Support, so no need to serve waiting periods. Benefits will be paid towards accredited mental health social workers who are mental health accredited by the Australian Association of Social Workers. Benefits for an initial consultation are payable only once per person, per provider, per year, per condition/course of treatment. All other consultations are paid at the subsequent consultation rate. In the event of Medicare paying a benefit for an Extras service (or item), no top-up benefits are payable from Medibank, this is inclusive of a Medicare Mental Health treatment plan. If you're not sure whether you're eligible to claim, you can check your cover summary, as well as limits and waiting periods, on My Medibank online, or the My Medibank app. ow to claim for a Mental Health Social Worker session on the app 1. Launch the My Medibank app 2. Select who the claim is for 3. Add provider details 4. Add item number 5. Add treatment details 6. Confirm details and upload your receipt 7. Add your payment details and submit claim How to claim for a Mental Health Social Worker session online 1. Log in 2. Select who the claim is for 3. Add provider details 4. Enter item number 5. Add service details 6. Upload receipt 7. Enter payment details 8. Review and submit Download the My Medibank app https://www.medibank.com.au/health-insurance/using-your-cover/mobile-apps/

Confidentiality

Confidentiality image
CONFIDENTIALITY

All personal information gathered by Paula during the provision of the counselling service will remain confidential and secure except when:

  • It is subpoenaed by a court;
  • Failure to disclose certain information would place the client or another person’s life in imminent danger; Your prior approval has been obtained to provide reports for a third party;
  • Confidentiality is controlled according to strict guidelines set down by the Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW). This is also provided in accordance with State Legislation.
For further information regarding confidentiality, ethical guidelines for Accredited Mental Health Social Workers and the procedures for making a complaint, please contact Paula at Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy on:

Mobile: 0401 300 266 or
Email: paulajohnstone1@outlook.com.au 

​APPOINTMENTS
Please contact Paula to discuss and arrange your counselling session.

Sessions are typically scheduled for 50 minutes, though this may vary depending on individual needs.

All scheduled sessions are invoiced at individual service rates.   

Please feel free to discuss the services available and which may be most appropriate for your situation.

Mobile: 0401 300 266
Email: paulajohnstone1@outlook.com.au

Contact

  • Novar Gardens South Australia, Australia
  • Depending on the service provided, home visits, hospital appointments or school support can be offered. Please contact Paula to determine if the service is right for you and your family.

Team

Paula Johnstone

Director/ Therapist

I am passionate about empowering individuals to fulfil their highest potential. I offer traditional individual talk therapy and mind/body therapies.

Read More  

CANCELLATION AND NON-ATTENDANCE POLICY

 Important Message To help us ensure that we can continue to provide our service and supports to as many people as possible it is important for us to be able to utilise all of our appointment availabilities in our schedules. As such, we need people to contact us if they are not able to attend an appointment. We understand that there are many things that may get in the way of being able to attend and unexpected events can happen, however when we are notified that someone cannot attend an appointment we do our best to offer that opportunity to someone else. The more notice we are given about a cancellation the greater the opportunity that the appointment can be filled by someone else who may be seeking prompt or immediate support. As such we have the following cancellation and non attendance policy. If you do not attend your appointment or you cancel your appointment with less than 24 hours notice, there will be a non-attendance/ late cancellation fee charged. This fee is the cost of your appointment. If your session is funded by a third party who does not cover the costs of non-attendances/late cancellations, then the fee will be billed to you (for example: Medicare, Department of Veteran Affairs). ​ Please note: The above costs are for therapy sessions only. Non-attendance/late cancellation fees for the assessments will be the costs of the clinician's time per hour for the appointment duration and we require 24 hours notice or more for a cancellation. If you have any questions or concerns please do not hesitate to contact us. ​We thank you for your understanding and for assisting us in ensuring our services are available for as many people as possible. 

Fee: $50

Store

Sensory Aids

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POP IT BRACELETS / BANDS $10 each

Sensory Bubble Bracelets / Bands

  

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FAQ's

If you've ever talked to family and friends about what counselling is, it's possible that each person will have their own interpretation and understanding of it. However, in general, Counselling aims to help you cope with personal situations, experiences, feelings and thoughts.
The counsellor will usually ask questions, listen to you, reflect on what you share and explore the range of options that may be available to you.

It's important to note that counselling is not about giving you the answer or providing you with a quick fix. 

It is best to view counselling as a way of putting things into perspective and opening you up to options and resources that you may not have previously considered.
For some, the idea of counselling may seem daunting or embarrassing, this may be due to:
  • fear of being judged
  • fear of others close to you may wanting to know why are you deciding to talk with a counsellor
  • embarrassment about what has or is happening for you or your family
  • concern that seeing a counsellor will draw unwanted attention to the problem or make it worse
  • feeling you should be able to manage things on your own
  • feeling things are not to be shared outside of the family
These concerns and fears are not uncommon.  This is where, Paula from Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy can assist.  With a phone call, you can confidentially talk with her about your concerns before making your first appointment.  Paula takes a sensitive and caring approach to different issues and understands that your ability to talk openly may be hindered by:
  • the nature of your situation or issues
  • bad experiences of counselling in the past
  • difficulties accessing counselling
  • or difficulties such as family commitments
In special circumstances, Paula is willing to consult with you over the phone or if local, she can come to you.
A standard counselling session usually goes for 50 minutes.
There are different rates depending on your circumstance and previsions of treatment.  
Please call Paula on 0401 300 266 for further information.

INSURANCE:

For clients wanting to claim sessions through their insurance, Bupa recognises the significant value in providing access to counselling. They have now accepted claims through your Bupa Health Insurance.
Please check with your health fund to see if you qualify.


Initially when you call and make an appointment you will only be asked for your full name, phone number and if you have: a referral through your GP, NDIS plan or other information that you may like to bring along with you.

When you attend your first appointment, we will discuss the referral pathway you have with you, such as through your GP, NDIS or privately. This information is used for administrative purposes only. Additionally, a copy of the personal information form will need to be completed, which can be downloaded from this site.

During our first meeting, Paula may ask such questions as, 'What has brought you here today?' or 'You spoke about ..... on the phone, how is that going?'

The depth of information provided by you is decided by you. Obviously, the more you can share, the greater the possibility of moving through the issues and forward. At no time will you be pushed to share more than you would like to. Many people who come to see me say, as they begin to feel more comfortable within the session, the more they are happy to share.  
As discussed earlier, making the decision to see a counsellor can seem daunting.  It is important for you to feel comfortable, so if brining someone with you helps, then by all means.
It is important to be sure you can trust this person with your personal information and not feel judged by doing so.
YES

It is advised to contact your health insurance agency and ask, 'am I covered?'

Currently the following are a list of agencies that cover counselling:
  • HCF
  • Bupa
  • Medibank
  • Teachers Health Fund
  • Doctors Health
  • St Lukes Health
  • Australian Regional Health Group Ancillary Provider Accreditation Service 

Private Health Funds

The AASW continues to advocate for the inclusion of Accredited Mental Health Social Workers (AMHSWs) in all private health funds.

NEWS…
The Australian Regional Health Group (ARHG) has added Accredited Mental Health Social Workers to its Ancillary Provider Accreditation Service, following the ARHG accreditation of the AASW on 1 September 2024. 

This arrangement will enable more private health funds to recognise and pay benefits for mental health services provided by AMHSWs. From 1 July 2024, St Lukes Health now recognises AMHSWs as providers of mental health services for their members to claim benefits under Extras cover that includes mental wellness.

From 1 July 2023, HCF recognises AMHSWs as providers of mental health services for their members to claim benefits under eligible Extras cover

.From 1 August 2023, an item schedule for AMHSWs takes effect after its endorsement by Private Healthcare Australia (PHA). This endorsement has enabled HICAPS to include AMHSWs on their claims processing terminals. 

Features

Client Forms

For the first time bookings you can save time in the initial meeting by completing Confidential Client Intake Form.

 Media

Calm Mind: Namaste Music Happiness Frequency - Serotonin, Dopamine and Endorphin Release Music, Relaxing Meditation Music Greenred Productions - Relaxing Music

Social

You can follow us on Facebook

Amazing Things Happen - by Alexander Amelines.

Alexander’s film gives an uplifting introduction to autism for young non-autistic audiences, aiming to raise awareness, understanding and tolerance in future generations.

Resources

Sometimes we know something doesn't feel right. We're confused, tired, overthinking, unable to sleep or our eating patterns change. Perhaps you find yourself avoiding contact with family or friends. So, we google it.... 'I'm feeling? ......... what's wrong with me? I've decided to share a range of fact sheets that may help you make sense of your thoughts, feelings and actions. Take a look and remember, go to your GP for expert advice and if needed a Mental Health Care Plan that allows you, or someone you know, to have 6-10 sessions per year.

Policy

Bayside Counselling & Family Therapy ensures our policies and procedures are an essential part of the organization. Providing a roadmap for day-to-day operations, along with the compliance with laws and regulations are available for all to view.

Resources

Policies

List of regulated policies to ensure appropriate mandates are implemented.