Child psychological services
Psychological services are a specialised field that focus on the mental, emotional and developmental wellbeing of children. Medical and mental health trained allied health professionals such as paediatricians, psychologists, social workers and occupational therapists can help families and children address many of the issues associated with childhood development, such as:
- mental, emotional and physical issues
- grief or relationship issues
- mental health issues
- learning difficulties
- behavioural difficulties.
They will work with the child and the parents to assess the situation before recommending a suitable treatment option, for example:
- parent counselling, support and education
- disability and learning difficulties support
- educational counselling and consultancy
- individual child counselling
- family or group therapy.
They can also help to identify, and manage more complex or specific mental health concerns.
Identifying mental illness
Signs of mental illness are quite broad and can often be confused with signs of physical illness. It is also important to consider whether behaviours are appropriate for their developmental level. If you are concerned about your child, you should talk to your doctor.
Some of the common signs of mental illness include:
- having problems academically at school
- an inability to concentrate, remember things, process information or solve problems
- constant and/or intense feelings of worry, stress or fear
- compulsive or repetitive behaviour
- physical or emotional outbursts
- poor social skills
- low frustration tolerance
- low mood, including sadness
- irritability
- social withdrawal
- change to behaviour e.g. clinginess or distancing
- disrupted sleep and eating patterns.
It’s important to remember that these signs can mean any number of things. Your doctor will be able to make a proper assessment and refer your child to a psychologist if further assessment is required.
Find a service
Child psychological services are available across Queensland. You can talk to your doctor or phone 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84) for advice on services in your area.
A referral can also be accessed through the Australian Psychological Society by:
- searching for a psychologist in your area—answer a brief questionnaire to find a list of suitable psychologists.
Search for mental health trained allied health:
Additional counselling services:
Financial support
The Australian Government’s Better Access initiative offers a Medicare rebate for some mental health care services provided by a registered psychologist.
Helpful resources
- Australian Psychological Society
- Raising Children Network
- Headspace
- Queensland Centre for Perinatal and Infant Mental Health
- BeYou
- Emerging Minds