The information below is current as at 8/12/24.
Statement of Competency and Experience
Preamble:
Please note that as a recently departed national Chair of the Psychology Notifications and Compliance Committee (PNCC1), and a national Deputy Chair of the Psychology Immediate Action Committee (PIAC), I have a demonstrable history of maintaining the highest standards of practice and integrity in the service of public safety. As such, all statements made below regarding my competencies and experience are made matter-of-factly and truthfully.
General:
I am a Registered Psychologist in the National Health Practitioner Regulation and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS), with an area of practice endorsement in Clinical Psychology. I have maintained continuous registration as a Psychologist since 1995. I am also the owner of the independent psychology practice, Secure StartÒ. Secure Start has operated continuously since August 2002. At the present time I deliver psychotherapy services to children and young people for whom the Department has authority to place (and adult stakeholders in their life) through my Belair rooms and clinics I deliver on behalf of DCP Psychological Services in Kadina and Port Pirie. I am also a consultant supervisor for local social enterprise, Connecting Families, and consultant supervisor and trainer for Martinthi, a program supporting kinship placements for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in care that operates as a joint initiative of InComPro Aboriginal Organisation and Uniting Care Wesley Bowden (UCWB). Further, I provide consultant supervisor services to two Directors (Owners) of social care enterprises in the UK, and I provide occasional support in relation to three of my training programs currently delivered by the TUSLA (Child and Family Agency) Fostering Service in Donegal, Ireland. In addition to my psychotherapy service provision to children and young people under guardianship, I provide psychotherapy services to community members referred via their general medical practitioner and the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). I am also the author of two books.
To the best of my knowledge, I have the longest history of continuous and direct service provision to children and young people in out-of-home care, and adult stakeholders in their life, of any Clinical Psychologist in South Australia, spanning almost thirty years. I also note that, alongside my clinical work, half of my career has been spent in the service of public safety through the regulation of the psychology profession.
Shapes Strategic Thinking and Change
In my years of employment, this aspect of my work started in 1991. Between 1991 and 1995 I was employed as a Research Officer at Southern Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. As part of this role I provided advice and guidance to Emeritus Professor Graham Martin OAM about research strategy, implementation, and outcomes in adolescent mental health, with a special focus on teenage suicide. Please refer to my curriculum vitae for further information, especially a list of publications in peer refereed journals. Of note, Professor Martin’s first (jointly authored) peer reviewed publications in international psychiatry periodicals were achieved as part of this collaboration. Of further note, one of my first-authored publications[1] became the evidential basis for the assessment framework in a national teen suicide prevention initiative (Youth Suicide: Recognising the Signs), targeting general medical practitioners.
Between 1995 and 2002 I was employed as a Clinical Psychologist in what is now known as the Department for Child Protection (DCP). During my employment I recognised the need for a broad-based explanatory framework in which to embed the Department’s work and decision-making. Ultimately, this led to me developing (with help from Patricia Rayment and Kylie Eitzen) the Department’s first in-service training on Attachment Theory, which was first rolled out to staff in 2002. Since then, attachment theory has become the most enduring theoretical basis for child protection decision-making in South Australia and is embedded in the current legislation. Of note, when the new legislation came into effect I delivered training to the judicial officers of the Youth Court of South Australia in attachment theory and its application in child protection decision-making.
From August 2002 I began my private practice, part-time. I transitioned to full-time in January 2003. Across the past 22 years I have fulfilled all duties that come with being a practice owner, including the management of staff, finances, ethical and legal obligations, and practice direction.
Supervision of psychology trainees was an enduring interest and I supervised my first trainee (now a senior manager in child protection in South Australia) in 1997. Many of the trainees I supervised between 1997 and 2005 were subsequently employed by the Department for Child Protection. In 2005 I was separately approached by representatives of the psychology departments of the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia to establish and manage child psychology training clinics. This represented an opportunity to scale supervision to meet a growing demand for psychologists in child protection. Ultimately, I went further with the University of South Australia and negotiated a collaboration with the Department for Child Protection which directly supported significant growth in the employment of graduate psychologists in the Department’s Psychological Services. At one stage, nearly all of the psychologists employed by the Department has been trained by me and/or through the Child Wellbeing Clinics I established at the Salisbury and Marion offices. It is worth noting that the clinic model I established was subsequently adopted by Flinders University of South Australia and the University of Adelaide in clinics that operated for almost a decade after my departure in 2008.
I have maintained an enduring interest in the care of children and young people who could not be safely cared for at home and developed resources for foster carers and others in association with this interest. These resources ultimately coalesced into the first edition of my book, A Short Introduction to Attachment and Attachment Disorder (2009). Prior to publication, the book had also served as an orientation manual for trainees I supervised, including the more than thirty trainees that went through the Child Wellbeing Clinics between 2006 and 2008. While I was directing the Child Wellbeing Clinics there was a significant change in placement arrangements in South Australia, and exponential growth in so-called ‘emergency care’. At this time I considered that I had the resources and the ‘workforce’ to assist the Department in the prevention of placement breakdowns (and reliance on emergency care). While this did not proceed, this led me to developing carer resources and training programs that resulted in:
- The implementation of the Triple-A Model of Therapeutic Care (Centacare Family Preservation Foster Care Program, 2014-2015)
- The implementation of the Triple-A Model of Therapeutic Care (TUSLA Fostering Service, Donegal, 2016-present)
- The implementation of the Kinship Care Program (DCP funded, sector-wide program, 2018-2020)
- The implementation of the CARE Curriculum (Martinthi Aboriginal Kinship Care program, 2021-present).
In addition, between 2010 and 2024 I held various appointments as part of the National Health Practitioner Regulation and Accreditation Scheme (NRAS), which operates under the Health Practitioner National Law in each State and Territory. In July 2022 I took over the role of Chair (Acting) of the NT/SA/WA Regional Board of the Psychology Board of Australia and was subsequently chosen by the National Board to Chair a newly formed Psychology Notifications and Compliance Committee (PNCC1), and act as a Deputy Chair of the Psychology Immediate Action Committee (PIAC). I held these positions until the expiration of my three-term limit (nine years) for appointment to National Committees and Regional Boards, in June 2024. The PNCC was a new committee formed as part of the Psychology Board and NRAS scheme’s transition to nationalisation and comprised a membership of practitioner and community representatives drawn from regional boards around Australia. In this role I was responsible for on-the-ground change management and the delivery of a cohesive and successful committee that served and protected the public interest. I was also responsible for maintaining a culturally safe environment for aboriginal members and practitioners who had matters that were considered by the Committee. For more information about my role I would ask that the selection committee seek a response from the Chair of the Psychology Board of Australia, Rachel Phillips, during consultation with referees.
A final note, applicants for registration as a psychologist who must pass the National Psychology Examination are referred to a recommended reading list that is approved by the Psychology Board of Australia. Since the inception of the Exam requirement, in 2011, my book A Short Introduction to Attachment Disorder has appeared on the list and, for much of the intervening period to date, was the only child psychology resource on the list. At the time of its appearance on the list, my only involvement in the National Scheme was as a member of the Health Practitioner Tribunal of South Australia, and I had no knowledge of the book’s inclusion until 2012, nor interaction with National Board and Committee members until 2013. I am mentioning this here as the book’s placement on this list represents that my work was considered to support the goals of the National Scheme, which was the provision of competent and safe psychology services to the Australian public.
Achieves Results
Between 1991 and 1995 the research program I supported achieved its first international, peer reviewed publications in Psychiatry journals, two of which achieved positive mention in yearly reviews in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The program also secured funding to implement the Early Detection of Emotional Disorders research program, which commenced in 1995 and continued for a further two years after my transition to a role in DCP. In addition, and as mentioned above, one of my first-authored publications[2] became the evidential basis for the assessment framework in a national suicide prevention initiative (Youth Suicide: Recognising the Signs) targeting general medical practitioners.
Since this time, some of the results achieved include:
- The integration of Attachment Theory into child protection decision-making and practice in South Australia
- The development and delivery of psychology training clinics as a joint initiative of the Department for Child Protection, the University of South Australia, and Secure Start.
- The development and delivery of staff and carer training programs that guide service delivery locally and internationally
- A successful psychology practice, spanning 22 years of operation
- Successful support of the transition of psychology notification and compliance matters to a national committee structure in the NRAS scheme.
I would add that these are macro results and do not reflect results achieved on an individual level with children and young people in need (and adult stakeholders in their life) across a long career of service provision.
Drives Business Excellence
Aside from my twenty-two-year-old independent psychology practice, I would point the reader to the following.
Though not the highest status person on the team, between 1991 and 1995 I was responsible for providing direct support and guidance into a research program that was immediately successful in developing the careers of Professor Graham Martin and myself. Our first joint publication was in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. At the time, this was a top-ranked psychiatry journal (maybe, it still is). This publication was influential in my gaining entrance to a Clinical Psychology Master’s Degree at the University of Adelaide.
Again, though not the person with the highest job classification, between 1995 and 2002 I drove the Department’s psychology service towards embracing a broad-based explanatory framework in Attachment Theory and led the development of the first in-service training module for the wider Departmental staff.
After I left the Department, I was approached by two local universities to set up child psychology training clinics. The Child Wellbeing Clinics operated under my direction between 2006 and 2008 and established a training structure that was operationalised for almost a decade afterwards and further met the Department’s need to expand its psychology workforce.
In October 2015 I met with representatives of the TUSLA (Child and Family Agency) fostering service in Donegal, Ireland. The outcome of this meeting was the service adopting the Triple-A Model of Therapeutic Care for its foster care program. For the next three years I travelled to Donegal each year to conduct training for TUSLA staff and foster carers, and in 2018 I trained twelve local trainers (six foster carers, six staff members) in the delivery of the Triple-A Model of Therapeutic Care. It is noteworthy that the Model was positively referenced by local carers far more positively than any other packages that are in this market (Ref: Training Needs Analysis conducted by the fostering service in Donegal) and was positively mentioned by Ireland’s independent assessment authority for health and social services (HIQA) when reviewing the TUSLA Fostering Service in Donegal. It is also noteworthy that this training package, and related packages I developed for school staff and the therapeutic management of complex and challenging behaviours, continue to be implemented by the Fostering Service in 2024.
Finally, I would reference my work mentioned above in the NRAS Scheme, particularly in relation to the leadership I provided as part of the transition from a Regional Board structure to a National Committee structure. I would also reference the consultant supervisor (and trainer) roles I provide to Connecting Families, Martinthi, and two social enterprises in the UK. In my work in the NRAS Scheme, with Connecting Families, and with Martinthi, I have been responsible for demonstrating and maintaining cultural safety for aboriginal professionals, carers, and members of the public.
Forges Relationships and Engages Others
Across the past thirty-four years, and especially across the past thirty, building effective relationships has been the cornerstone of my work, from organisational leaders to the deeply hurt and troubled young person referred to me and adult stakeholders in their life. My success in doing this extends from my capacity to consider the individual experience of each person (and organisation) I am engaged with in an open, reflective, and compassionate manner. Much of my work, including my books, periodical articles, blog articles, training packages, podcast appearances, and YouTube videos reflect relationship-oriented practice that achieves strong working alliances through accessible and respectful communication. I would add that across the past thirty years I have delivered training programs to diverse audiences, including professional staff, parents and caregivers, and high school students studying Psychology, reflecting my capacity to tailor my communication to the needs of my audience.
In recent times, my capacity might best be reflected in my role in leading and supporting practitioner and community members through a significant change period, as part of my appointment as inaugural Chair of the Psychology Notifications and Compliance Committee of the Psychology Board of Australia. In this role I was required, in a very short space of time, to create an effective and happy team from diverse members, in the pursuit of an effective committee that safeguarded the Australian public who access psychology services. In this role I was also required to effectively perform all of the duties of a leader, especially managing diversity of opinion in the pursuit of consensus decision making. I took on this role at the request of the National Board and demonstrated my capacity to be a team player in successfully promulgating the nationalisation agenda of the Psychology Board of Australia and Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
Across my career I have built a network of connections in the child protection and out-of-home care space locally, nationally, and internationally, including in the UK, Ireland, and the USA, and refer the reader to my programs and recent podcast appearances that have been cited on my curriculum vitae in evidence of this.
Exemplifies Personal Drive and Professionalism
I believe that the career I have had reflects my commitment to taking on and responding effectively to the problems others struggle with. I have also been privileged to be entrusted with some of the highest roles and offices in my profession in Australia with respect to the regulation of the psychology profession and protection of the public. I have valued and learnt from high achieving mentors and anticipate continuing to do so. Across a long career I have worked in public, private, university, and regulatory sectors, and extensively in highly scrutinised roles and environments.
Final Comments
I believe that family connections are the most healing connections, and I continue to advocate for the safe reconnection and return of children and young people to their birth parents and family. My blog and YouTube videos reflect this. I particularly support connection to culture, community, country, and family for our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youngsters and endeavour to promote this in all my work and especially through my supervisory and training roles in the Martinthi program.
[1] Pearce, C and Martin, G (1994) Predicting Suicide Attempts Among Adolescents, Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 90 : 324-328
[2] Pearce, C and Martin, G (1994) Predicting Suicide Attempts Among Adolescents, Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 90 : 324-328
See below recent interviews I participated in which expand upon my work and views: