Deciding to seek mental health support can already be difficult.
Then, when you are ready to make an appointment, a whole new set of questions can appear:
Do I need to see a GP first?
Do I need to tell reception that I want a Mental Health Treatment Plan?
What will the GP ask?
After I receive a referral, does my GP find a psychologist for me, or do I find one myself?
The process is usually less complicated than it first seems.
If it is not an emergency, this is a useful pathway to remember:
Book a GP appointment → initial assessment → Mental Health Treatment Plan / referral (if appropriate) → find a psychologist → begin the first stage of treatment → return to your GP for review if needed
Step 1: Book a GP appointment
If you would like to access Medicare support through Australia’s Better Access initiative, starting with your own GP is usually the easiest option.
When booking, it can help to tell reception:
“I’d like to discuss my mental health.”
Or:
“I’d like to discuss a Mental Health Treatment Plan.”
Healthdirect recommends booking a long appointment, as a mental health assessment usually needs more time than a standard short consultation.
An important recent change
From 1 November 2025, Better Access Mental Health Treatment Plans and related referrals place greater emphasis on continuity of care.
Where you are eligible for Better Access, these services will usually need to be managed by:
- a GP or prescribed medical practitioner at your MyMedicare-registered practice, or
- your usual medical practitioner.
This means it is not usually intended to be managed by a temporary GP who does not know you at all. If you already have a regular family doctor, starting there will often make the process smoother.
Step 2: What should you prepare before seeing your GP?
You do not need to prepare a complete medical history. But it can help to think through a few things in advance:
- When did these feelings or changes begin?
- Have you been feeling anxious, low, unable to sleep, or noticing other changes?
- Has this affected work, study, family life or everyday activities?
- Have your sleep or appetite changed?
- Have there been any major life pressures recently?
- Are you taking any medicines or supplements?
- Have you had a similar experience before?
- What help are you hoping for right now?
If you are worried you may not know what to say in the room, make a few notes on your phone. You can also bring a trusted family member or friend. Healthdirect notes that a mental health assessment can sometimes take more than one appointment, so you do not need to solve everything at the first visit.
Step 3: What will your GP do?
Your GP will not usually ask only, “Are you depressed?” and immediately write a referral.
They may ask about your:
- mood and emotional experiences
- sleep
- physical health
- current medicines and treatment
- work or study
- family circumstances
- sources of stress
- your personal and family health history
- alcohol use or other lifestyle factors.
Depending on your circumstances, they may also use a standard questionnaire such as the K10 or DASS-21. Current Australian Government guidance for Better Access Mental Health Treatment Plans requires an assessment of mental disorder and usually an appropriate outcome measurement tool, unless this is not clinically suitable.
The purpose is not to put a label on you. It is to help your GP decide:
What level and type of support do you need right now?
Step 4: What is a Mental Health Treatment Plan?
A Mental Health Treatment Plan (MHTP) is not a certificate that proves you have a mental illness. It is a treatment plan developed together by you and your doctor.
It will usually record:
- your current mental health situation
- treatment goals
- recommended treatment approaches
- services that may be used
- next steps.
A Mental Health Treatment Plan is mainly for people who have a diagnosed mental health condition and meet the Better Access eligibility criteria. Not everyone who has been under a lot of stress will necessarily need one. Your GP will assess what is appropriate for you.
Step 5: How do you find a psychologist after receiving a referral?
You do not have to see only the psychologist nominated by your GP.
Where the relevant requirements are met, your GP can recommend a provider, but you can also find an eligible provider yourself and use the referral. Australian Government patient information makes clear that, after receiving a GP referral, you may choose your own provider who is eligible under Better Access.
You might consider:
- a GP recommendation
- Healthdirect Service Finder
- a psychology clinic
- searching for a suitable registered psychologist yourself
- asking whether they accept Mental Health Treatment Plans.
Before booking, it is very helpful to ask:
- How much is each session?
- What is the approximate Medicare rebate?
- What gap will I need to pay myself?
- Do they bulk bill?
A Mental Health Treatment Plan does not mean psychology appointments will necessarily be free. Each psychologist sets their own fees, and Medicare usually covers only part of the cost.
How many sessions can Medicare support?
Under Better Access, eligible people can currently receive a Medicare benefit for up to:
- 10 individual mental health treatment services, and
- 10 group mental health treatment services
in each calendar year.
However, 10 sessions are not generally provided all at once. The initial course of treatment is usually up to:
6 individual sessions
If you need to continue, your doctor can assess your progress and arrange the remaining sessions. For example, after six sessions, up to four further individual sessions may still be available that year.
Start treatment → review how it is going and what you need → decide the next step.
What happens at your first psychology appointment?
The first appointment will not usually begin with deep psychological therapy straight away. The psychologist may first want to understand:
- why you have come
- what is troubling you most
- how long these concerns have been present
- your work, family, sleep and physical health
- what you hope treatment will help you achieve
- whether you have had psychological therapy before.
You can also notice for yourself:
Do I feel comfortable talking with this psychologist?
Psychological therapy relies heavily on the therapeutic relationship. Professional qualifications matter, but so do trust, your ability to speak openly, and whether the communication style feels right for you.
If the first appointment does not feel like a good fit, it does not mean therapy is not for you. Sometimes that particular provider is simply not the right fit.
What happens after a few appointments?
During treatment, the psychologist will provide necessary professional feedback to the referring doctor; Better Access also has relevant treatment-report requirements for allied health professionals.
If you need more treatment, you may need to return to your GP to discuss your progress and the next stage.
Healthdirect currently notes that the Mental Health Treatment Plan itself does not have a fixed expiry date. The number of Medicare-rebatable sessions is still calculated according to calendar-year rules.
What if I do not want to use Medicare?
You can book directly with a psychologist and pay privately. One of the main purposes of a Mental Health Treatment Plan is to help eligible people receive Medicare support for part of the treatment cost.
This does not mean: “Without a GP referral, you can never see a psychologist.”
Rather:
If you want Better Access or Medicare support, the GP and the correct referral process are important.
When should you not wait for this process?
This article explains the usual care pathway for non-emergency situations.
If you or someone near you is at immediate risk of suicide, self-harm, harm to others, or another serious safety risk, do not wait for a Mental Health Treatment Plan or a standard psychology appointment.
Call 000 or go to the nearest Emergency Department immediately.
If the situation is serious but not immediately life-threatening, in NSW you can contact the NSW Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511 for 24-hour assessment, advice and service referral.
Liora summary
For a first attempt to seek mental health help in Australia, the process can be simplified into five steps:
① Book your usual GP, preferably as a long appointment ↓ ② Tell your GP what has been happening; you do not need to diagnose yourself first ↓ ③ Your GP assesses whether a Mental Health Treatment Plan or referral is appropriate ↓ ④ Find a suitable psychologist and ask about fees, the Medicare rebate and the gap before booking ↓ ⑤ Begin the first stage of treatment, then decide the next step based on how it is going
You do not need to understand the whole mental health system on day one. You only need to take the next step.
For many people, that first step is:
Book an appointment with a GP you feel able to speak honestly with.
Related reading
If you are still unsure about the difference between a psychologist and a psychiatrist, read: “Psychologist or Psychiatrist? Who Should You See First for Mental Health Support in Australia?”