❓ This WA parliamentary question and answer reveals a significant shortage of child psychologists in the South West region, with a long-term vacancy and reliance on outsourcing and referrals to address the need.
AnsweredQoN 3494Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
I refer to child psychologists in the South West region, and I ask as at 1 October 2015: (a) how many full time equivalent (FTE) positions are located in the South West and where are they located; (b) of the FTE positions, how many are permanent and how many are contract positions; (c) how many positions are currently vacant; (d) what is the wait time for a consultation; and (e) how many children are currently on the wait list for a consultation?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
1 December 2015
Responded by
Parliamentary Secretary representing the Minister for Health
Response time
42 days
(a) 1.0 full-time equivalent (FTE) clinical psychologist is based in Bunbury and provides Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) services to the WA Country Health Service (WACHS) - South West.
(b) One permanent position.
(c) One. The WACHS has advertised the position on a number of occasions since it became vacant in December 2013, but has been unable to find a suitable applicant. While the position is vacant clinical psychology services are being outsourced to non-urgent service providers.
(d-e) CAMHS South West does not run a waiting list for consultation. Patients requiring individual psychotherapy as part of their treatment are referred to private and/or non‑government organisation (NGO) providers. Patients who require clinical psychology services and cannot access private services can be referred to Headspace, a federally funded National Youth Mental Health Foundation, by their general practitioner. Younger children are referred to the Child Development Services Team in Bunbury who are funded to purchase Clinical Psychology Services in the South West.
(b) One permanent position.
(c) One. The WACHS has advertised the position on a number of occasions since it became vacant in December 2013, but has been unable to find a suitable applicant. While the position is vacant clinical psychology services are being outsourced to non-urgent service providers.
(d-e) CAMHS South West does not run a waiting list for consultation. Patients requiring individual psychotherapy as part of their treatment are referred to private and/or non‑government organisation (NGO) providers. Patients who require clinical psychology services and cannot access private services can be referred to Headspace, a federally funded National Youth Mental Health Foundation, by their general practitioner. Younger children are referred to the Child Development Services Team in Bunbury who are funded to purchase Clinical Psychology Services in the South West.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.