The Talk Shop

The Talk Shop’s Story

Like many of The Talk Shop’s Clients, its founder and CEO Matthew Vella knows exactly what it’s like to have your plans turned upside down.

“I was a software engineer until I developed carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands. By the time I returned after a period of rest and treatment, the industry had moved on without me.”
 

Keen to get back to work, Matt tried various options, but none really inspired him. Seeing friends and neighbours who were frustrated with not being able to access a psychologist as easily and affordably as they could their local GP, Matt decided to do something about it and the idea for The Talk Shop was born.

From the outset, Matt’s goal was to make high-quality mental health care accessible to everyone.

“My goal was to make high-quality mental health care accessible to everyone – Matt Vella, CEO”.

The Talk Shop’s Story
Private and bulk billed appointments

7,000 of Melbourne’s 8,000 GPs refer Clients to The Talk Shop

Accepts private clients and referrals

The Talk Shop has provided 150,000 hours of therapy over the last 10 years

Provides telehealth options

1,100 phone calls per week

The Talk Shop Vision

Ten years ago, most people were used to seeing a bulk billing doctor. When they were referred to a Psychologist, they were often taken aback that they had to pay just to talk to someone. That barrier prevented many people from accessing therapy, even when they could afford to pay.

So Matt made bulk billing available to any Client who wanted it with no need to pass a means test. That’s enabled many people to benefit from high-quality mental health care and to realise its value.

“You get 8-10 Medicare-funded sessions per year with a Mental Health Care Plan so there often comes a point when you’ve used those sessions and have to wait until January to get new ones. We started to notice that Clients didn’t want to wait. When they’d run out of bulk billed sessions, they’d pay privately because they now really valued the support they’d received and didn’t want to be without it.”

Attracting a team of great psychologists

It’s not just the Clients who receive great support at The Talk Shop.

“Staff love it here because they get to focus on their Clients, while we handle all the admin,” says Matt. “They get to do what they love, what they’ve trained for and they’re not burdened by all the other time-consuming stuff that’s beyond their skillset.”

In The Talk Shop’s unique model, Psychologists are entirely Client-focused. Their time is spent on researching, planning and delivering therapy and on professional development. “It’s all the work Psychologists love and none of the stuff they don’t,” says Matt. “And because we have such a large Clientele, there’s plenty of opportunities for staff to develop special interests and see more of those Clients.”

Behind the scenes, Matt runs a highly efficient business administration team that manages bookings, billing, marketing, liaising with funding agencies and referrers and everything else involved in running a thriving practice.

Attracting a team of great psychologists
The Talk Shop uses automation and technology to improve productivity

The Talk Shop uses automation and technology to improve productivity, reduce mistakes and increase efficiency. “I’m still an IT programmer at heart,” chuckles Matt. “I want to solve a problem once with a good solution then reapply it through a clear procedure for handling that issue next time.”

Even with efficient processes and an experienced team, Matt still says there’s easily an hour of administration required for each hour of therapy.

“Many Psychologists have a deeply ingrained idea that success means eventually running your own practice with your name on the door,” says Matt. “But they often don’t just realise how much work it takes and that they’ll really feel more like a case manager than anything else. They’re endlessly torn between working with Clients and working on the business. I didn’t want my staff to feel like that.”

Over the last decade, The Talk Shop has delivered
150,000 hours of therapy

The Talk Shop has delivered 150,000 hours of therapy

Matt and his team have a wealth of knowledge and expertise they use to support new and experienced Clinicians. 

There’s a strong, supportive culture at The Talk Shop resulting in a high level of staff retention. Matt says, “Many of our staff have been here for years. They go on maternity leave and come back, they move overseas and come back, they go and work in research for a while and then they come back.”

They also tell their friends to work at The Talk Shop. “About 40% of our staff are here because another staff member told them they’d love it,” says Matt.

A decade on, Matt is justifiably proud of The Talk Shop’s impact. “We’ve helped tens of thousands of Clients to improve their mental health and we’ve equipped numerous Psychologists to provide the best care they can possibly offer. We’re excited about where The Talk Shop can go from here. “