Therapy
Psychological assessment and treatment for adults aged 16 years and over.
Psychology, Consultancy & Training services
Dr Sonia Kalsi
UK-trained Psychologist with dual registration to practise in Australia and the UK.
Consultancy
University suicide management, prevention and postvention consultancy.
Training
Mental health and suicide-related training for tertiary education staff.
About
Professional background
I am a UK-trained Psychologist with dual registration to practise in Australia & UK. With a career in mental health spanning over 30 years, I have worked with individuals with a wide range of psychological difficulties including depression, anxiety, stress, low self-esteem, trauma, self-harm, suicide, relationship difficulties and bereavement, and in a variety of settings such as the National Health Service and voluntary sector in the UK.
I also have 20 years of experience working in the tertiary education sector in the UK and Australia, and therefore have a good working knowledge of student mental health.
Qualifications
- Doctorate in Counselling Psychology & Psychotherapy by Professional Studies
- Clinical Diploma in Integrative Psychotherapy
- Certificate in Coaching and Mentoring (Level 5 accreditation)
- Foundation Certificate in Counselling skills
- MSc Health Psychology
- BSc (Hons) Psychology
Research area of interest
Student suicide
Membership of Professional Bodies
Australia
- Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (General Reg: PSY0002631720)
- Australian Psychological Society
- Australian Association of Psychologists Inc.
UK
- British Psychological Society
- Health & Care Professions Council
- British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy
Publications and presentations
- A UK study on student suicide in universities: Training and support implications for frontline staff (2024). Workshop for Mental Wellbeing in Higher Education Conference 2024 (15 May 2024), Leeds Horizon, UK.
- Supporting suicidal international students in universities: Insights & Recommendations (2023). Presentation at the International Student Advisers’ Network of Australia (ISANA) Annual Conference 2023, Sydney, Australia.
- Working with suicidal students: Therapists’ perspectives (2022). Poster presentation (online) at the Australia and New Zealand Student Services Association (ANZSSA) Annual Conference 2022, Australia.
- Recommendations report on student suicide risk management, prevention and postvention (2022). Student Health, Counselling & Wellbeing Service, Griffith University, Brisbane, Australia.
- A difficult tightrope to walk: Experiences of working with suicidality in higher education (2021). University and College Counselling Journal, British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, November 2021 edition.
- “A difficult tightrope to walk”: An exploration of therapists’ experiences of working with suicidal students in Higher Education (2020). DCPsych Thesis, Middlesex University/Metanoia Institute, London, UK.
Services
Therapy, consultancy and training
Therapy
I offer short-term (minimum of 6 sessions) and long-term psychological assessment and treatment to adults aged 16+ years, including university students.
Face-to-face therapy sessions are available from Monday to Fridays at my consultation rooms in South Brisbane or Mount Crosby, or via telehealth on request.
Fees start from $264 per session. Reduced fees ($240) are available for concession card holders including university students.
I aim to offer a first appointment within 1 week of initial contact and accept referrals from:
- Private-funding clients
- Clients with mental health care plans (eligible for $101.55 rebate via Medicare)
- Private health insurers
- National Redress Scheme
- DVA
- WorkCover
- NDIS clients with self-management plans
Consultancy
With suicide becoming an increasing concern across universities globally, tertiary education providers need to consider how they can best meet the needs of suicidal students and the wider university community.
Having completed doctoral research on student suicide in the UK, I now offer consultancy to universities on suicide management, prevention and postvention.
The consultancy process involves:
- Gathering information about your university counselling/wellbeing service
- Interviewing key staff responsible for service provision to suicidal students
- Reviewing service and benchmarking service for good practice
- Producing a report of recommendations, specific to the unique needs of your university and based on relevant evidence-based research
Training
I design and deliver training to universities on the following areas:
- Suicide awareness
- Mental health awareness
- Dealing with mental health crises
- Working with students with mental health disabilities
- Supporting students with mental health issues
Sessions are suitable for all university staff (Academic, Professional and Administrative), including mental health professionals working in tertiary education and can be designed to meet the needs of your service/organisation.
To submit a training request, please provide:
- Contextual information about your institution
- Content to be covered
- Learning objectives of the session
- Length of time allocated for session
- Number of delegates
- Location details
Locations
Locations
Office 1
South Brisbane, 4101
Level 7, 154 Melbourne Street, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101
Transport information:
- 2 hr free parking available on Boundary Street (300m–approx. 5 mins walk)
- Cultural centre Bus station (550m/ approx.9 mins walk)
- South Brisbane Train Station (500m/ approx. 8 mins walk)
Map of city office
Office 2
Mount Crosby, 4306
Address provided following appointment confirmation
Free parking available on site
Map of Mount Crosby
Contact
Appointments, consultancy and training
In order to book an appointment or discuss consultancy or training opportunities, please email, contact me or book an appointment below.
I will endeavour to reply to you within 24 hours.
Online appointments
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Having difficulty booking online? Email Dr Sonia Kalsi or call 0452 407 911.