TOPIC:

What are some of the most common questions Clinical Psychologists get asked?

Q:  How long will treatment take?

A: Treatment depends on the age of the child, their presentation and type of therapy they are engaging in. Typically therapy would start with 6 sessions, after which there would be a review of the childs’ progress. After the review the therapist and family would make further decisions about treatment together.

Further Info:

Talk to your therapist, as this is highly specific to the  child and family situation.

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Q: What is challenging behaviour?

A: Challenging Behaviour/s are any behaviours that have the potential to cause harm. This could include harm to self, harm to others (including animals), and damage to property. Challenging Behaviour any is behaviour that may also result in the child or young person being excluded from accessing community-based activities. This typically includes education, sporting activities, clubs, and community locations such as shops.

Further Info:

Talk to your therapist if you are concerned about your child and possible challenging behaviours.

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Q: What do you do in your sessions?

A: This again depends on the age of the child, their presentation and type of therapy they are engaging in. This can include therapy involving talking, play, art, and other techniques (however these may require the psychologist to have completed extra and specific training).

Further Info:

Talk to your therapist, as this is highly specific to the child and family situation.

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Q: Why do you give parents homework?

A: Often parents will be given homework to reinforce what has been completed in the session/s. This is because the research tells us that when parents implement the suggestions from therapy at home, their children are more likely to make faster gains throughout their treatment. Parents who are engaged with their child’s therapy are often more responsive to their child’s needs. This means that they are often are more able and likely to identity and respond to problems when they arise. Sometimes therapists will give the parents themselves homework to help them to become more engaged in their child’s journey. This may also include being giving tasks to help them identify and respond appropriately to their child’s evolving needs.

Further Info:

Talk to your therapist, as it is important that the homework provided to you needs to fit in with what your child’s therapist is working on.

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Q: What training have you completed?

A: Psychologists in Australia, Europe and the UK have to complete a minimum of 6 years training to become registered under the protected title of Psychologist. In Australia, this usually includes a four-year undergraduate degree, followed by two-year post graduate study (i.e. a Master’s degree, Doctorate degree or supervised practice). In the UK, this usually includes a three-year undergraduate degree and then a three-year Doctorate degree.

Further Info for those interested in becoming a Clinical Psychologist:

APRHA which is the regulating body for Psychologists in Australia

Australian Psychological Society on how to become a Psychologist.

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Take a look at our blog post about  Being Family Focused!

TOPIC: Why we love Theratrak!

We have been lucky enough to know Laura Simmons from Theratrak since the beta stages of the app.

She has worked incredibly hard to develop an app focused on easy, user friendly home programs for parents and professionals; and I must say, she has done a stella job.

Laura is going to change the world with her app! We are so glad we have been on this journey with her, and can’t wait to see what else she does!! 

8 Things we love about Theratrak:

1. It’s instant. You can do it in session, take photos of the kids doing the exercise and it just happens right there and then. There is no extra work that has to happen behind the scenes or when you leave the session.
2. Theratrak is individualised. Each child and their family has an individual program with photos of themselves – not of some image off google. Making treatment programs individualised is something we do really well at OTs and I am glad Laura hasn’t lost this in her app.
3. It’s secure. It is a really safe and confidential app. The app is password protected and all the photos are not stored on your phone, only within the app. Parents can have a login in to view the program, as you do as a health professional.
4. It works on your smart phone. It is portable and easy to use, so you don’t need to do any extra paperwork as it all can be done right there in the session.
5. It’s made by one of us – not a tech giant trying to solve a problem they know nothing about. Laura has really through this out and has done a fantastic job to boot!
6. It supports families that are  far away. Therapists can easily update the program so that families don’t need to travel into therapy every week.
7. It allows you to add your own activities. There are a tonne of ‘tried and true’ OT activities, but it is really easy and simple to add your own activities! I have added 11 of mine this week and it is so fast and simple. This helps you to keep things fresh and for home programs not to get stale.
8. Families have a really clear idea of when/how long for/ and what to do. All the feedback I have been getting from using this app in my practice has been positive – and if it hasn’t, I have fed this back to Laura and her team and she is able to add it to the list of things for the next update!!

Final Thoughts:

This app has changed. our. lives. It makes home programs so much easier for everyone, and while I know there are plenty more updates to come, this app will only get better and better.

Further Information:

You can find more about Laura and her team here.