Welcome!

I hope this website provides you with the information you are seeking. I also hope that it helps you feel more comfortable about seeking professional assistance.

The help I provide is:

non-judgemental (my role is to understand and help, not to judge)
compassionate (which comes naturally from encountering another’s difficulties)
evidence-based (based on clinical research as to what actually helps)
tailored to you (since you, your life, and circumstances are unique)
confidential (with rare exceptions, such as if a court subpoenas my records)
collaborative (we work together, with you actively involved in how we proceed)

Your psychologist

Dr. Phil Chittleborough
B.A.(Honours) (Psychology)
Master of Clinical Psychology
PhD. (Psychology)

Clinical psychologist registered with AHPRA (Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency)
Psychology Board of Australia approved supervisor (clinical psychology)
Member of ACPA (Australian Clinical Psychology Association)
Member of AACBT (Australian Association for Cognitive and Behaviour Therapy

Registered provider with Medicare, WorkCover, TAC (Transport Accident Commission), DVA (Department of Veterans Affairs), and most private health insurance funds.

Who I help

I mainly see adults and older adolescents, stemming from my original training and experience. If you are seeking help for someone of early-adolescent age or younger, I recommend you consult a psychologist who specialises in that age group.

Clients of all walks-of-life, sexuality, ethnicity, religious beliefs, and identity are welcome. This practice provides services to all people with any of the presenting issues listed under the Services tab.

If you are seeking help for significant drug or alcohol problems, or help in directly addressing legal issues (e.g., in dealing with a charge that will require attendance at court), you would be best advised to seek a psychologist who specialises in such matters (a forensic psychologist).

Please note that this practice does not provide a crisis service. If you are having suicidal thoughts or feelings, or think that you might harm yourself in some way, please call Lifeline (13 11 14) or the Victorian Suicide Line (1300 651 251). Both lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

If you are unsure …

Please feel free to call me on 0478 513 898 if you just want to ‘sound me out’ or have some questions about seeing a psychologist. I will happy to assist.

Dr. Phil Chittleborough, Clinical Psychologist

Helping you towards a better quality of life

Services

Phil provides help with the following problems/difficulties. Quite often, clients have more than one of these. Several can be worked on across appointments.

Anxiety

Anxiety
Worry/generalised anxiety
Health anxiety
Social anxiety
Phobias
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
Panic attacks and Panic Disorder

Depression (& other)

Depression
Suicidal thoughts
Low self-esteem or feeling worthless
Confidence problems
Guilt (excessive or unjustified)
Feeling helpless
Loneliness

Stress, sleep, and health

Stress
Burnout/exhaustion
Fatigue
Insomnia (difficulties with sleep)
Chronic medical/physical conditions (coping)

Inter-personal

Assertiveness difficulties
Relationship issues
Shyness
Partner abuse/violence – recovery
Anger
Trusting others (difficulty)

Employment and study

Workplace issues (e.g., being bullied, excessive workload, stress)
Study issues (e.g., procrastination, perfectionism)
Burnout/exhaustion

General

Perfectionism
Procrastination
Difficulty making decisions
Difficulty solving problems

I may be able to help with other issues not listed here, however as part of ethical conduct I may indicate that I don’t have the skills/experience to help with a particular issue. If that is the case, I can help you to find a psychologist who can assist.

Please note: this practice does not provide a crisis service. If you are having suicidal thoughts or feelings, or think that you might harm yourself in some way, please call Lifeline (13 11 14) or the Victorian Suicide Line (1300 651 251). Both lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Approaches/therapies

Any one or more of the following approaches may be used to help clients with their issues. Each of these are evidence-based approaches (i.e., they have stood up to careful scientific and clinical investigation for their effectiveness). The approach(es) used are tailored to each client.

CBT (Cognitive Behaviour Therapy)
Schema Therapy
REBT (Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy)
Emotion-Centred Problem Solving Therapy
Mindfulness and mindfulness-based therapies
CFT (Compassion-Focused Therapy)
ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy)
Communication/assertiveness/inter-personal skills training
Other specific methods (e.g., relaxation training, time management skills, conflict resolution skills, imagery re-scripting, etc).

Supervision of psychologists or counsellors

I am PBA-approved supervisor in clinical psychology, and can offer supervision for psychologists seeking AHPRA endorsement as a clinical psychologist as well as registered psychologists (or counsellors) seeking peer supervision.

Appointment Information

Initial enquiries

If you would like to make some enquiries before deciding whether or not to make an appointment, please ring me on 0478 513 898. If I am unable to answer your call, please leave a message and I will call back within approximately 24 hours.

As well as answering your questions, I will probably ask you to briefly describe the problem/difficulties you are experiencing. This is partly to make sure that the issue(s) are within the scope of my experience and skills.

I will also ask some other questions and provide you with further information about the services offered. It is entirely up to you whether you want to proceed or not, based on this information.

I'm here to Help

Making an appointment

If you are happy to proceed, we will arrange a suitable appointment date and time. In advance of that appointment, I will send you an Information Sheet and ask you to complete a General & Personal Details form before the first appointment.

Once you attend an appointment, any further appointments are usually made near the end of the session. If not, you can call the above number.

Appointment times and duration

The standard length of appointments is 50 minutes, with reviewing and planning usually occurring in the last 5 minutes. Appointments usually run close to the scheduled time, but occasionally may start or end later.

Appointments are offered on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and involve either in-person or video-/phone-based arrangements. In-person appointments are available subject to public health directives. above number.

Tuesday appointments are offered from 12 noon to 8 pm, and are only for video- or phone-based appointments. Wednesday appointments are offered from 2 pm to 8 pm and are usually only for in-person appointments (however some exceptions may be applied).

Location

In-person appointments are held in a multi-disciplinary health centre at 22 Dudley Street, Eltham VIC 3095. This centre has several other allied health professionals who offer their own private practices

Health considerations for in-person appointments

If you feel un-well with any symptoms that could potentially be infectious (e.g., common cold, gastro-intestinal sickness, COVID-19, or other), please contact me in advance of the appointment so that we can make arrangements for a video- or phone- based consultation instead (if you feel well enough).

Changing the in-person appointment to a tele-health appointment will save others (e.g., in the waiting area) from being exposed to viruses. It also protects health care professionals at the premises.

For the same reasons as above, I will not provide in-person appointments if I am un-well. Depending on my health, either a video- or phone-based appointment will be offered instead, or your appointment will be re-scheduled to the next suitable day and time.

COVID precautions and procedures

Government health directives mean that health services – such as those provided by Optimum Psychology – are only able to offer in-person appointments under certain conditions. It also means that specific procedures need to be followed. Details of these are provided to clients upon making their first appointment.

Both Optimum Psychology and the health clinic itself at 22 Dudley Street Eltham have COVIDSafe Plan. Both plans are in place for your benefit and health, as well as other clients and health professionals at the premises.

What to expect

Roles

Although I will ‘lead’ in the appointments, I will nevertheless work collaboratively with you – meaning that I will invite you to actively participate (e.g., deciding on the focus for a session, asking questions, giving feedback on proposed methods for addressing problems, etc).

Ultimately, I will be aiming to help you become your own ‘psychologist’ – that is, to gradually become able to address your problems/difficulties (with guidance and feedback along the way). By the time sessions come to an agreed conclusion, the aim is for you to be relatively confident in dealing with any possible future similar problems. However, you can return for appointment any time you need.

Content and sequence of appointments

The initial appointment(s) typically involve me seeking to gain a thorough understanding of your challenges/problems and their context. Information will also be gathered about other areas of your life (e.g., employment, friendships, physical/medical health, etc) as sometimes these can be relevant to your care.

Time will also be spent identifying suitable objectives in terms of managing or addressing your difficulties or problems. It may be necessary to prioritise these objectives/goals if there may not be time to consider them all (e.g., in the number of sessions per year that Medicare supports).

I will be particularly interested in identifying the specific triggers, causes, and contributors to those problems. These may include your circumstances, past experiences, behaviour of others, your thoughts/beliefs, and other possibilities. If relevant, I may present you with a diagnosis.

I will also explain what is likely to be helpful. Often, this involves learning certain skills. You will be assisted in developing and refining those skills. Completion of tasks between appointments is often important in making progress in mastering the application of these skills.

Improvement may take some time, especially if your problems are long-standing or complex, so it is important to not necessarily expect rapid results – although some can be addressed relatively quickly. Feedback will be regularly sought from you to ensure that progress is being made towards the objectives/goals established at the beginning.

Changing appointments and cancellation policy

If you need to cancel an appointment for whatever reason, please do so by calling 0478 513 898. Messages can be left at any time of day or night.

At least 24 hours’ notice is required to cancel an appointment. A late cancellation fee may apply, unless circumstances prevented you from providing this advance notice, such as last-minute requests by your employer to work, or similar.

Feedback and questions

Your feedback is welcomed at any time, as are questions. This is an important part of ensuring the sessions are providing you with what you are seeking.

Fees and Payment

Consultation fees

Most clients seek Medicare-assisted appointments by seeking a referral and Mental Health Care Plan from their GP (doctor). This qualifies clients to receive a Medicare contribution of $129.55 towards the total consultation fee.

The standard fee for a 50 minute consultation is $185. This is significantly less than the fee recommended by the Australian Psychological Society. For clients who receive assistance from Medicare, this equates to a gap fee of $55.45. For those experiencing financial hardship, a lower fee can be negotiated.

A maximum of 20 Medicare-supported appointments can be held in a calendar year. This typically takes the form of an initial referral from your GP for 6 sessions, then 4, then a block of 10. You will need to return to your GP after any one of these groups of sessions if you desire more.

If clients have private health insurance, their fund may contribute to the consultation fees, however the gap fee that remains is often considerably more than Medicare.

Clients who attend as part of an approved WorkSafe/WorkCover or TAC claim may have the consultation paid for by those agencies.

Payment procedure

For in-person appointments, electronic payment is preferred, using EFTPOS on a HICAPS terminal. This enables clients to instantly have the Medicare rebate paid back into their account, or for the private health insurance fund to make its contribution (leaving you the remaining gap fee to pay).

For video- or phone-based appointments, an invoice will be provided. Payment can be made either by direct funds transfer into an account, or by the payment option below. Upon receiving confirmation of payment, you will be provided with a receipt. For Medicare clients, this can be uploaded to myGov to receive the rebate.

Workshops/Training

Dr. Phil Chittleborough also provides skills-training groups for clients, various occupational groups, and the general public on several different topics.

• Details of coming events will be provided closer to the date.

Contact

Location and contact details

22 Dudley Street,
Eltham, VIC 3095

Free parking is located across the road.

Phone: 0478 513 898
Fax: (03) 9957-8160
Email: phil@optimumpsych.com.au

If your call is not answered, please leave a message. I will return your call within 24 hours of a working day (Mon – Fri). Please note that neither my phone nor my email is monitored after 8 pm weeknights, or during weekends.

Appointment days and times

Tuesdays 12 noon – 8 pm

Wednesdays 2 pm – 8 pm

Additional times may also be offered.

Crisis help

For crisis help, please ring Lifeline (13 11 14) or the Victorian Suicide Line (1300 651 251). Both lines are open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.