Telehealth Appointments

There are three aspects to your eligibility for telehealth therapy:

1. Clinical eligibility: can your therapy needs be met through telehealth? Your Psychologist or counsellor will decide this with you.

2. Funding eligibility: if your session is wholly or partially funded by a government agency, do you meet their criteria?

3. Personal eligibility: 

• Do you have a private place to hold your telehealth session? Somewhere you can close the door and talk freely without being overheard?
• Do you have the technology you need for a video call such as a smartphone, laptop or tablet?
• Do you have a landline in a private room if you’re taking a phone call?

In principle, there is nothing preventing you having a telehealth session at any time if your clinician agrees that it is suitable.

Here’s what you can do to ensure a positive telehealth session.

1. Send us your paperwork

• Upload to our secure portal 
• Fax to 1300 224 669
• Mail to PO Box 400, Diamond Creek, Vic 3089

2. Protect your privacy
You need to be able to talk freely without fear of being overheard so choose a private room with a closed or locked door for your session.

3. Ensure your comfort
Your session may run for nearly an hour. Ensure you have somewhere comfy to sit. Have a glass of water or box of tissues handy.

4. Charge your device
To avoid a flat battery cutting your session short, charge your device or ensure it is plugged in during your session.

Medicare: You need a referral and a Mental Health Care Plan from your doctor to access funding for in-person or telehealth psychology.

Private: Check with your health fund about their telehealth rules.
If you’re paying the full costs yourself and not claiming any rebate, then your telehealth eligibility is up to you and your clinician.

TAC: All TAC sessions are eligible for telehealth at present.

NDIS: NDIS funds can be used for services delivered by telehealth.

Workcover: Contact your Workcover agent to get approval for telehealth.

Video call is definitely the best way to experience a telehealth session because it most closely resembles a face-to-face session.

Communication is about so much more than words. It’s about eye contact, body language, facial expression. It’s these things, along with words, that form meaningful communication.

Video telehealth helps you to establish and retain a rapport with your clinician. And it helps your clinician grasp how you’re really doing.

1. Preparing for your telehealth session

Check your email for a link. You’ll need:

• A comfortable, quiet, private space
• Wifi or a mobile internet connection
• A fully charged smartphone, tablet or laptop. If using a laptop, you’ll need a microphone and a webcam (most are now inbuilt) and the Google Chrome browser
• To install the Jitsi Meet app (free from the App Store and Google Play)
• Headphones if you wish.

2. Starting your telehealth session

1. Settle into your space & close the door. Get comfy. 
2. Click on the link we sent you to join the video call.
3. When prompted for a name, enter only your initials or your first name (not your full name to protect your privacy). 
4. Wait for your clinician to join the call then get started.

3. During your session

• Talk to your Clinician, just as you would if you were face-to-face.
• Choose whether you want to keep your video on or not.
• Mute your microphone if you wish while you listen to your Clinician (just remember to turn it back on before you speak).

4. Afterwards

When your session ends, press the red ‘Hang up’ button in the Jitsi Meet app.

Though we prefer video telehealth, we’re also happy to provide telehealth over the phone. You might prefer that if you don’t wish to be seen or if you don’t have a suitable device for a video session.

What you need to do for a good phone telehealth session:

1. Preparing for your telehealth session

You’ll need:

• A comfortable, quiet, private space
• The phone for the number you gave us (make sure it’s fully charged)
• A headset, if possible, so that you don’t have to hold the phone to your ear the whole time (speakerphone will also work if there’s no risk of being overheard).

2. Starting your telehealth session

Settle into your space & close the door. Get comfy.

Wait for your clinician to call you. The call will come from a private number to protect your privacy. Because we’ve called you, this call will not show up on your phone bill.

3. During your session

Talk to your Clinician, just as you would if you were face-to-face.

4. Afterwards

Hang up, just as you would at the end of any other phone call.

You know that a face-to-face appointment is private. You walk into our clinic, we take you to a consultation room and we close the door while we talk.

It can pricel a little different online though. Can people ‘snoop’ on the call? Can they hack into your records? Will your most private thoughts end up being broadcast to the world?

Not at The Talk Shop.

Your privacy is our top priority. That’s why we don’t use insecure commercial programs like Skype and Zoom. They’re fine for work meetings or chatting with your rellies but they’re not robust enough to handle telehealth.

Instead, our video telehealth platform is Jitsi Meet. This is hosted on our own secure servers and has end-to-end encryption to protect your privacy.

To further ensure your privacy in a telehealth session we:

• Never include your name in the video call link
• Check we’re definitely speaking to you before saying we’re from The Talk Shop.