Perth Mental Health OT
Welcome to Perth Mental Health Occupational Therapy
Meet Suzanne Thomas
I'm Suzanne, a Mental Health endorsed Occupational Therapist who is registered with the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Agency (AHPRA) and a member of OT Australia.
The primary focus of my Occupational Therapy practice is mental health / psychosocial disability and providing focused psychological strategies, therapy supports, psychosocial rehabilitation and capacity building interventions.
Suzanne Thomas
I have a special interest and over 28 years of extensive experience in the field of mental health, across the spectrum of mental illness, in a range of specialist mental health settings (inpatients and community mental health services) working as a Mental Health Occupational Therapist with adults and older adults and in Senior Occupational Therapy Mental Health positions.
I understand how difficult it can be to struggle with the complexities of living with a mental health challenge, and I seek to be attentive to the lived and learned experience of each person, without making assumptions of their needs, as well as recognising that an individual's mental health and daily functioning can fluctuate.
I am a strong advocate of empowering and equipping individuals struggling with mental health challenges to develop self-management strategies, resilience and capacity, to foster and facilitate growth and positive change, and to live life with meaning, connection, hope and purpose.
Service Information
As a Mental Health Occupational Therapist, I provide occupation-based practice which focuses on how a mental health condition / psychosocial impairment is impacting and/or interfering with a person's functioning in day-to-day life; with self-care, household tasks, work, sleep, rest and relaxation, study, recreation, relationships, daily routine / time management, social and community participation, activity engagement, sense of self, emotional regulation and self-management.
I support you to identify and implement skills and strategies needed for resilience and recovery. To optimise your mental wellbeing so that you can do more of the things that you care about, the activities that matter most to you and take actionable steps to move forward with living a healthier and happier life.
I am passionate about utilising both my Occupational Therapy (OT) skills and Focused Psychological Strategies to make a difference in the lives of those who are experiencing mental health challenges / have chronic and complex mental health needs.
I am committed to providing compassionate, capacity-building, collaborative and customised mental health care that is focused on supporting you to live life well in spite of having a mental health challenge / psychosocial impairment.
I value delivering a gentle, warm, authentic, responsive, understanding, caring and individualised service, without judgement, that is based on integrity, excellence, trust and best practice.
I value working alongside and in partnership with you and your support team.
Who we help
Adult NDIS participants
I work with adult NDIS participants who have a primary psychosocial disability / impairment or who are experiencing mental health challenges. The focus of my Mental Health Occupational Therapy practice is on providing therapy supports and capacity building interventions. Although I do provide Psychosocial Functional Capacity Assessments (FCA), I currently do not have capacity to provide stand alone, initial or urgent FCAs.
Better Access to Mental Health Scheme (BAMHS)
Under Medicare's Better Access to Mental Health Scheme, I am an endorsed Allied Health Mental Health Provider. I provide Focused Psychological Strategies (FPS) to adults and older adults who are referred by their GP or Psychiatrist under the Better Access to Mental Health Scheme (BAMHS) with a Mental Health Treatment / Care Plan (MHTP).
Please note that I do not specialise in providing reports for forensic, medico-legal issues, workers comp or similar.
Therapy supports and psychosocial interventions
- Personalised and professional support to identify and implement functional goals to promote independence, activity participation and mental health recovery.
- Coping skills and compensatory strategies to better manage emotional, psychological, relational, motivational, behavioural and life challenges.
- Support to manage and minimise the impact on functional capacity of impairments attributed to a mental health condition.
- Supportive counselling to work through the complexities and challenges of living with a mental health condition and to apply relevant and helpful focused psychological strategies to promote mental health recovery.
- Support with positive action and activity scheduling
- Support with exploring and engaging in meaningful and pleasant pursuits.
- Support with emotional regulation and self-management strategies.
- Support with making adjustments to everyday activities to enable individuals to develop skills and confidence, enhance functioning and empower active participation in activities of daily life.
- Support to improve functional abilities resulting from psychosocial disability support needs.
- Assistance to develop life roles, relationships, responsibilities and daily routines.
- Capacity building interventions to improve and maintain performance and participation in everyday life.
- Support with identifying and overcoming barriers and obstacles to wellness, mental health recovery and participation in everyday life.
- Assistance with developing mental health promoting habits and activity patterns.
Therapeutic Approach
As an OT, I provide occupation-centered practice which looks at your functional needs and what challenges you may be experiencing with everyday living within your unique life situation. The daily tasks / activities that you want to do, would like to do, are expected to do and need to do but aren't able to do, are concerned about or finding challenging to accomplish.
I utilise a range of integrated approaches which include being strengths-oriented, future-focused, wellness-based, participation-focused, action-directed, person-centered, neuro-affirming, needs-based, trauma-informed, solution-focused, goal-directed, recovery-oriented, whole-health oriented, growth-oriented and outcome-based.
My Mental Health Occupational Therapy practice is informed by cognitive behavioural therapy, recovery-oriented cognitive therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, solution-focused brief therapy, narrative therapy, dialectical behaviour therapy and compassion focused therapy approaches.
I use a range of psychosocial interventions which include - psychoeducation, motivational interviewing, relaxation and mindfulness strategies, problem-solving, anger management, communication and social skills building, anxiety and stress management.
I value and support a whole-person perspective to recovery and well-being.
Fees and Rebates
NDIS
I see plan and self-managed adult participants and all fees are set in accordance with the current NDIS pricing guidelines.
Better Access to Mental Health Scheme (BAMHS)
As a Mental Health endorsed Occupational Therapist, I am approved to provide Focused Psychological Strategies (FPS) to clients who are referred under Medicare's Better Access to Mental Health Scheme with a Mental Health Treatment Plan (MHTP) by their GP or Psychiatrist. You are able to claim a rebate from Medicare for OT sessions provided under the BAMH scheme.
Frequently Asked Questions
What age ranges do you work with?
I work with adults and older adults.
Are you a NDIS registered provider / business?
I am unable to see Agency / NDIA managed participants. I see Plan and Self-managed NDIS participants.
What is a Psychosocial Disability / Impairment?
A psychosocial disability describes an impairment that arises / results from a mental health condition that is significantly impacting a person's engagement in everyday life.
What diagnoses/disabilities do you work with?
The focus of my Occupational Therapy practice is mental health / psychosocial disability.
I see adults and older adults who have a diagnosis of:
- Anxiety
- Agoraphobia
- Panic attacks
- Social anxiety
- Chronic worry
- Mood disorder
- Depression
- Bipolar Affective Disorder
- Adjustment disorder
- Complex - Post-Traumatic Stress disorder
- Obsessive-compulsive disorder
- Personality disorder
- Schizophrenia
- Schizoaffective disorder
- Psychotic disorder
- Delusional disorder
- Substance use disorder
I support clients who are experiencing challenges with low self-esteem, worrying and negative thoughts, decreased confidence, low motivation, difficulties managing change, difficulties with mood management, difficulties with socialising and interpersonal relationships and stress related concerns.
Although the main focus of my OT practice is mental health / psychosocial impairment, I do work with clients who have co-occurring conditions / inter-relating needs.
Do you prescribe and provide Assistive Technology (AT) assessments and reports?
I do not specialise in Assistive Technology (AT) or home adaptations / aids / modifications / equipment. I do not prescribe AT requiring NDIS Assistive Technology reports. If functional needs are identified that are outside of my experience and skill set, I will inform you so that these needs can be assessed and addressed by an appropriate alternative provider.
What is your referral / intake process?
Please leave a message on my phone message bank or send me a text message on 0457 965 040 or email me at admin@perthmhot.com.au and I will usually get back to you within 1 business day.
Can you help with NDIS access requests?
Being a sole practitioner, I do not have capacity to provide assistance with NDIS access requests instead I focus on working with adults who are current NDIS participants.
Do you have a waitlist?
My intake capacity / availability does vary so please contact me with any questions and queries.
Do you travel through out the Perth Metro area?
My work address is based in the suburb of Hillarys and I see clients who live north of the river (NOR) usually within a 30-minute drive away.
Do you see clients in a clinic/office?
I am a mobile, community-based service and see clients in the comfort and convenience of their own home or in a preferred community venue where they feel most comfortable such as a cafe or library.
Do you provide Telehealth?
Yes. My Telehealth service is delivered through secure Practice Management Software. You will require a device with a camera, the internet and an email that I can send the Telehealth link to. Most Computers, Phones, Tablets and Notebooks are usually suitable. Telehealth is useful for those clients who experience difficulties or barriers with accessing Mental Health Occupational Therapy services and supports.
What does a Mental Health endorsed Occupational Therapist mean?
To become Mental Health endorsed, an Occupational Therapist (OT) is required to have an appropriate level of post-graduate mental health practice experience and clinical capability, satisfy competency related domains set out by OT Australia, meet the National Practice Standards for the Mental Health Workforce, complete annual professional development related to the provision of Focused Psychological Strategies as well as engage in regular and ongoing mental health-focused supervision.
Tell me more about Occupational Therapy (OT)?
- Occupational Therapy (OT) is a degree-based health and social care profession that is science-driven, evidence-informed and outcome-based.
- In Australia, Occupational Therapists are registered with and regulated by the Australian Health Practitioners Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).
- Occupational Therapists are allied health professionals who uniquely focus on a person's occupational (activity) needs seeing all humans as occupational 'doing' beings because how we occupy (spend and structure) our time is part of every person's day and life-story.
- The profession of OT has its roots in mental health and the field of mental health is a core component of Occupational Therapy.
- OT is recognised as one of the 5 key professions in mental health care.
- Engagement in purposeful occupations (activities) is seen as been therapeutic and fundamental to health, wellbeing, quality of life, and the process of recovery.
- Promoting a person's functioning in personally-relevant activities of daily living is a core tenet of Occupational Therapy.
- Empowering functional capacity is a primary focus of the profession of Occupational Therapy.
- Occupational Therapists are clinicians who provide occupation-centered interventions that focus on helping people gain, regain and sustain function in activities of everyday life from a holistic perspective.
- Occupational Therapy sees activity engagement as a basic human need and that what you do everyday matters.
- Occupational Therapy equips individuals to engage in purposeful activities in spite of impairment, illness, disability, limitations, obstacles or other life challenges.
- OT is a pragmatic and practical profession that is focused on improving and enhancing a person's participation in activities of everyday life.
- Occupational Therapy is not just about the act / activity of 'doing' but being, becoming and belonging.
Contact details
Suzanne Thomas (Senior Mental Health Occupational Therapist)
OT Australia Mental Health endorsed Occupational Therapist
Phone Message Bank on mobile 0457 965 040 - please leave a message or send me a text message, or email me at admin@perthmhot.com.au
and I will usually get back to you within 1 business day.
Postal address of mobile community-based service
PO Box 989, HILLARYS, WA, 6923
Please note: This service is NOT a crisis/urgent care or emergency service
Please ring the 24 hour Mental Health Emergency Response Line if you require urgent or crisis care on 1300 555 788 (Perth)
Occupation is a Curious Thing
It pervades our lives and marks our days.
It defines us and is defined by us.
It both shapes the world and is shaped by the world.
It can be known by the tools it uses and the wake it leaves in its path.
It is intangible and invisible until a person engages in it.
It is a performing art.
It can only be seen when a person performs it and only understood when a person tells you its meaning.
(Polatajko, 2007)