The Rosy Room FAQS

Psychology appointments with a fully registered psychologist at The Rosy Room cost between $230 and $250 per 50 minute session (initial sessions cost between $250 and $270) depending on who you see and how much is involved. With a Mental Health Treatment Plan rebate you will be out of pocket anywhere between $102.95 and $156.65 per session. 

Psychology appointments with a provisionally registered psychologist at The Rosy Room cost $130 per 50 minute session (initial session costs $150). Provisional psychologists are charged at a flat rate and are not eligible for a rebate from Medicare or Private Health.

We are not a bulk billing clinic. When existing clients are unable to afford sessions due to loss of job, disability or other genuine reason that places them in financial hardship The Rosy Room psychologists offers reduced fees at our own discretion. We can only offer this to a certain number of clients at a time and you need to be committed to attending therapy for us to consider you as a worthwhile candidate. We have a limited number of client hours we can each offer each week and we see each time slot as a precious moment to being able to help somebody.

A Mental Health Care Plan or MHCP is something that your doctor puts in place for you if you meet criteria for a mental illness. With the plan in place, you will have access to a Medicare rebate of $92.90 or $136.35 (depending on the psychologist) for each session, and will be able to use this for a maximum of 10 sessions within a calendar year.

A Mental Health Care Plan is easy to obtain, just book a longer appointment with your GP and tell them about how you have been feeling. They will talk you through a list of questions and prepare the paperwork for you. You need to bring this paperwork along to your first appointment so we can claim the rebate for you through our online system. You will also need to ensure that your bank account details are registered with Medicare so they can refund you.

Please note that you need to pay in full on the day of your appointment at The Rosy Room and then we lodge the claim online for you and the rebate is refunded into your nominated bank account within 1 to 2 business days.

If your 10 sessions have gone over two calendar years and you haven’t done a total of 10 in the current year, then you are able to revisit your GP and do a review on your plan. This will give you the additional sessions to make up 10 for the current calendar year. If however you have used all 10 sessions in the current calendar year you can continue to come along to therapy as a private patient, either paying in full or using private health to assist you.

We have HICAPS facilities (a special EFTPOS machine) here at The Rosy Room Psychology Practice which means you will be able to claim private health rebates on the spot. Not all providers are available through HICAPS and the amount that you receive back varies depending on your fund and level of cover. Please check with your Private Health Provider if you are concerned.

No you do not need a referral to see a psychologist at The Rosy Room. You can ring us today to book in with one of our local Springfield Psychologists at The Rosy Room. However, if you meet criteria for a mental illness you can obtain a Mental Health Care Plan from your GP which will mean your sessions will be rebated by Medicare, making them much more affordable. You need this plan in place first before your initial appointment to access the rebate. You are welcome to see us a few times privately first if you need some support before you have time to get the plan in place.

Your session with your psychologist at The Rosy Room will usually be 50-60 minutes. You will decide with your psychologist how often you should attend therapy. This could be weekly, fortnightly or even monthly depending on your situation. Therapy needs to suit you and your lifestyle and our psychologists are flexible to working with you in a way that will best support your needs.

Your first session will mainly be a getting to know you session where your psychologist will ask you a lot of questions about different areas of your life and get some context to help them understand what you are currently struggling with. You do not have to talk about anything you are uncomfortable to talk about and you can let your psychologist know. It is completely fine if you would prefer to just have some strategies for coping with a current issue and not go into detail about your past. Baring in mind though, it can be easier for your psychologist to assist you if they have a better understanding of what you have been through and how you tend to cope.

One of the most important factors that contribute to positive outcomes in therapy is the rapport you have with your psychologist. If you find that for some reason your have a personality clash or do not click with your psychologist - that’s ok! You are more than welcome to try a different psychologist. We don’t take offence at all as we know everybody is different and we can’t suit everybody. We like to think of it as ice-cream flavours- some people are going to love strawberry and some people are going to prefer not to eat it. That doesn’t mean there is anything wrong with strawberry.

No not at all! Don’t worry about the psychologist name on your Mental Health Care Plan, Medicare allows you to switch psychologists even if your referral has a particular name. You don’t need to do anything with your GP, we contact them for you and let them know about the change.

Psychologists are bound by a code of ethics which requires them to maintain confidentiality at all times. This means that our psychologists here at The Rosy Room are not able to tell anybody about what you tell them unless you give them your permission. Psychologists take this very seriously and can be stripped of their registration if they breach this code. However, it is important for you to understand that there are a few exceptions to this rule- 1. If the psychologist feels that there is immediate risk to your safety or others they will have to take action to make sure you or the other person is safe and this may involve breaking confidentiality and telling your family member/friend/GP/police or hospital staff.  2. If your file is subpoenaed by the court your psychologist has to legally send them a scanned copy. Other than these two reasons, you can trust that all information stays between you and your psychologist.

Each session you book with us is a whole hour reserved in the psychologists day for you. If you do not show up to an appointment or fail to let us know by 10am the business day before that you need to cancel or reschedule, a late fee will apply. The late fee is 100% of the appointment fee. We ask that you respect the psychologists time and understand that the more notice you can give the easier it will be for us to offer the spot to someone else who really needs the appointment.

We know that late fees can sting and nobody likes them but it is a standard procedure that happens in psychology clinics and something we would rather not have to do but actually need to. Each psychologist can offer 6 appointments a day. If 3 people cancel the psychologist loses 50% of their income for the day and the practice still has to cover bills and receptionist wages. For us to be able to keep helping people we need these kinds of policies in place to cover the overheads that occur when someone does not show up to an appointment or give us enough time to fill the spot.

Please feel free to ask us here