Chris Mackey and Associates Newsletter

Farewell Denise

We would like to wish a very happy retirement to one of the icons of our practice, Denise.

Denise is finishing up at the practice after 21 years, and we would like to thank her for her wonderful contribution over that time. It's hard to describe how significant Denise's contribution to the practice has been, having seen so much growth and so many changes in that time. It is likely that if you have ever been a client of the practice, you would have been helped by Denise at some stage. We will miss having Denise around and wish her well as she will now be able to enjoy some more time with her family, travel and coordinating a new house build by the sea.

Thanks so much for all of your hard work Denise!

Medicare Session Quota Reduced in 2023

The Federal Government has announced a final decision to cut the COVID extra 10 rebated sessions in 2023.

The Government has confirmed that individuals who have a mental health treatment plan and current referral for sessions (whether for the initial 10, or additional 10) will be able to use that referral to access up to 10 sessions in 2023, without having to go back to their GP. This aligns with current arrangements for the rollover of unused Better Access sessions across calendar years.

We are disappointed with this decision to halve the sessions from the 20 that the Australian Psychological Society has lobbied strongly for the Government to make permanent.

Our practice was one of the 4 organisations nationwide whose outcome data was used by the research team at Melbourne University to show the effectiveness of treatment outcomes. Our data was included in the final report of an independent evaluation of the Medicare Benefits Scheme Better Access initiative. Thanks to Chris and Rowan for their significant work compiling this extensive body of data for the Government report.

Relevant Links:

Chris's article in The Geelong Advertiser about the cut in rebatable sessions: https://www.chrismackey.com.au/cut-not-right-move/

The Federal Government media release: https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-mark-butler-mp/media/improving-better-access-for-all-australians?language=en

Better Access evaluation final report: https://www.health.gov.au/resources/collections/evaluation-of-the-better-access-initiative-final-report

The practice opinion pieces for the Geelong Advertiser continue on Mondays monthly.

The most recent articles were: Block Out the Noise

An article about various influences that can negatively impact on our judgments, based on the recently released book, Noise. It's relevant to voting in elections, improving the accuracy of our predictions, and many other types of judgments and decisions.

and (Medicare) Cut Not the Right Move mentioned earlier in this newsletter.

These articles, along with many more, can be read here on our website or via our Facebook Page

The practice podcast, Psych Spiels and Silver Linings has continued to release fortnightly episodes.

In Promoting Synchronicity in Ten Steps, we discussed the topic of how to cultivate more synchronicity for ourselves. The episode followed an interview we did with author Lisa Buksbaum, who spoke about how synchronicity has benefitted her throughout her life.

In the most recent episode, Heed ing the Need to Ask For Help, we discussed how we can make mental health more of a collective issue.

It follows an experience Chris had hiking where someone broke their ankle and felt a burden to those assisting, even though this person clearly needed the help. We discuss how this relates to mental health and how we can get into the trap of not asking for help when we need support with our mental health.

You can listen to the podcast on your favourite podcast player or at psychspiels.com.au

If you've enjoyed the podcast, we would really appreciate it if you could rate and review and share the podcast with a friend as this will extend the reach to others who may benefit.