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Q&A with Provisional Psychologist, Tammy Barber from Horsham

When Tammy first started her internship as a provisional psychologist in 2019, there were limited grants available to help ease the financial strain of weekly supervision costs. Recent changes to the Health Workforce Scholarship Program meant that Tammy could access financial support from RWAV to help her to continue to practise and afford supervision costs as a provisional psychologist based in the country. We caught up with Tammy to ask her a few questions about life as a psychologist in Horsham.

Where has your career pathway taken you and how did you come to work at Function Therapy in Horsham?

I wanted to be a psychologist when it was first introduced at my high school as an elective. There was never anything else that I thought was my passion. However, personal events meant I was unable to continue university at that time. After moving from Geelong to a farm in the Wimmera and having a family, I was still longing to be a psychologist so I enrolled as a student at 26. I completed a Bachelor of Behavioural Science with a major in psychology and a minor in advanced psychology with Swinburne Online. This meant I was able to continue living in a rural area, work part-time, raise a family and complete my studies all at the same time. 

By my fourth year at Monash, I hadn’t seen many job offers for new graduates within the region so I began looking for alternative ways I could use my degree. I contacted Function Therapy after I saw them advertising other allied health positions. I was incredibly lucky to find Kirsty and Rob Armstrong. They had already noticed gaps in the availability of mental health services in the community and were interested in expanding their occupational therapy practice to include psychology. Despite the complexity and limitations of being an intern, they were willing to provide me with an opportunity to complete my pathway to full registration as a psychologist. 

Tell us about the work that you predominately do as a provisional psychologist

My primary role at Function Therapy is to provide psychological therapy and services. This may include therapy, assessments, diagnoses, and case consultation. I use a range of evidence-based therapies and techniques to help clients with mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, behavioural difficulties, trauma and loss. 

I see clients from various referrals, such as the NDIS, the PHN, and the Department of Health and Human Services, and ages ranging to preschool to the elderly. I have just started expanding our mental health services to include group programs such as the Seasons for Growth Program, which provides support for children aged six to 12 years who may be experiencing difficulties with recent loss or major life changes. 

You recently received a bursary through the Health Workforce Scholarship Program, how did you utilise the grant?

All provisional psychologists are required to have regular supervision, usually one to two hours per week from a fully registered psychologist. Supervision is to help oversee all clinical work provided by the provisional psychologist to ensure clients are receiving professional and appropriate treatment. Like myself, most provisional psychologists have to pay for their supervision, but also are either in volunteer positions or low incomes due to being a trainee. 

When I started my internship at the start of 2019 there were no grants to help ease the financial strain of paying for supervision each week. However, RWAV could see the need for people like myself to provide professional services in rural Victoria once qualified. So, over the past 12 months they made changes to allow grants to cover costs of supervision, which I was able to access this year. This grant has allowed me to focus more on my training and therapy work and less on how I am going to afford supervision costs. It also meant I could afford to upskill.

What areas of mental health training are important for provisional psychologists working in rural and regional areas? Is there a high need for more psychologists in the region?

I think it is important when working in rural and remote areas to be flexible in your role. There are limited psychologists in rural areas and people presenting with a wide range of difficulties. I believe there is a lack of services for more severe mental health issues such as borderline personality disorder, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. 

Accessing psychologists with specialised training for these types of disorders often requires substantial travel for clients. There is also a lack of assessment and diagnostic services, especially for children and people with disabilities. 

I think we have a unique situation in country areas that require a broader knowledge base to cover the community needs. However, training can be out of reach as generally psychologists require a master’s degree and a further two years specialised supervision for endorsement in specific areas of psychology (such as education and developmental psychology or clinical psychology). Even if a psychologist was able to complete their degree online, supervision would still be difficult to obtain due to limited psychologists trained in these areas who are also trained supervisors.

What do you love about living and working in the country?

I find people in the country can be more relaxed and flexible. A smaller community means knowing the people I work with or people I engage with in the community, so it is a familiarity. I also live on a farm and travel over half an hour to work, but I get to see the countryside during that time rather than traffic and buildings. I love the space and quiet that country life offers, especially for raising a family.  

Are you interested in work opportunities? Currently RWAV is seeking clinical psychologists to provide outreach services as part of a Chronic Pain Management Program in priority communities based in Western Victoria. Click here to learn more about this opportunity.

Are you interested in pursuing professional development opportunities or postgraduate studies? Consider applying for the Health Workforce Scholarship Program. RWAV offers grants and scholarships to health professionals working in private practice in rural and regional Victoria. Find out more here. 

The Health Workforce Scholarship Program is an initiative of the Australian Government Department of Health administered by RWAV in Victoria.

F E E D B A C K

For nearly 30 years, Catherine has worked as a consultant, senior executive, adviser and government relations specialist with a particular focus on health, social services, social policy and industry development.  Catherine is currently Partner and Co-founder of Evaluate, an economics consulting company, where she is engaged in the evaluation and development of efficient and cost-effective services and policies, principally in relation to health and lifesciences.  Prior to this, Catherine worked in the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries with responsibilities for government relations, stakeholder engagement, policy development, regulatory affairs and communication in Australia, the United Kingdom and Europe.  Catherine is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and a past board member of Marriott Support Services, Melbourne City Mission and Victoria Legal Aid.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Strategy, Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Committee Member
• Audit and Risk Committee Member

BAppSci, GradDipBus, MBus, GAICD, FIML

John is an experienced CEO and senior executive who has held many roles in various hospitals, in government (Health Department), and in professional associations related to healthcare. Until recently, John was the CEO of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS), where he had major involvement in various sustainability in healthcare initiatives, Indigenous health and ‘Building Respect’ cultural improvement strategies.
John’s expertise encompasses leadership, strategic policy development, professional standards and government relations. At RACS, he led the college through the COVID-19 pandemic and oversaw the digitisation of a range of member offerings, including aspects of training. He remains a key advocate for good corporate governance and the need for leaner and competent skills-based boards.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Strategy, Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Committee Member
• People and Culture Committee Member

BBus(HRM)

Lauren commenced in the role of Manager People and Culture in August 2018 and is responsible for leading the implementation of RWAV’s People and Culture strategy, policies, processes, functions and team.

Lauren’s team is committed to implementing activities and initiatives to support the achievement of RWAV’s strategies and strengthen RWAV’s position as an ‘Employer of Choice’.

Lauren is an experienced Manager and HR professional, with a career spanning the professional services, automotive, defence, and not-for-profit sectors.

CPA
Albert Giorgini is the Senior Advisor to CEO at RWAV.

As an experienced finance executive, with an extensive career in public transport and in the automotive and industrial gas sectors, Albert has honed his skills in driving financial performance improvements with a commercial and business transformation focus.

Through his strategic financial skills, Albert has demonstrated an exceptional capacity to lead and develop large teams in complex and changing environments to achieve the financial and regulatory requirements of the business. His extensive experience has given him a deep understanding of the industry and its challenges, equipping him with the expertise to drive impactful change.

Albert has highly developed communication and stakeholder management skills to support his strong planning, analytical and financial performance improvement acumen, always striving to create innovative solutions that drive growth and success.

BMed, MMedSci, FRACGP, FARGP, FACRRM, DipPractDerm, DipMedHyp, DipFP, DipBusAdmin, GAICD

Morton is an experienced GP and medical educator. He is currently in clinical general practice in suburban Melbourne and previously practised in rural Victoria for 10 years. Morton is Chair of the General Practice Mental Health Standards Collaborative and a past Chair of the Mental Health Professionals Association and is a board member of the Mental Health Professionals Network. He is also the Medical Director of the Royal Flying Doctor Service in Victoria. He is a member of the RACGP Victoria Council.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Board Director
• Governance Committee Member
• Chair of Strategy, Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Committee

LLB, BSc, MMgt (Strategic Foresight), GAICD

As a lawyer and business consultant, Jane has worked for many years with company boards and executives across a range of areas including IP commercialisation, SaaS businesses, healthcare products/services, privacy compliance and data/IT security. Jane is General Counsel for ID Consulting. She has served as a Director of BreastScreen Victoria, Ballarat Health Services and chairs RWAV’s Governance Committee.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Deputy Chair
• Chair of the Governance Committee
• Strategy, Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Committee Member

BMBS, MBA, FRACP, FRACMA, FAICD

Grant is a retired physician and gastroenterologist whose specialist
clinical practice was in regional and rural Victoria. In the latter part of his career, Grant moved into management and leadership roles at organisational and system level, with a focus on clinical quality and clinical engagement.
Having worked for government in several jurisdictions, through this, Grant has held leadership roles in the national safety and quality agenda, and has also held major professional level roles including a 2-year period as President of the Adult Division of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians from 2016–18.
Grant teaches clinical governance with a focus on helping healthcare boards and executive teams understand this critical aspect of their work, and consults to organisations on their clinical governance and nclinical leadership.
Grant is an experienced and qualified board director, having attained
Fellowship of the Australian Institute of Company Directors in 2018,
and currently chairs a major sporting organisation.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Board Chair
• Nominations and Remuneration Committee Member
• Governance Committee Member

BA (Hons), BEc, Grad Dip Bus, MBA, FGIA, FAICD

Roger is an experienced CEO, Chair, non-executive director, board consultant and course/workshop facilitator, with experience in the health, human services, law enforcement, regional economics, disaster relief, education, transport and environmental industries. He has sat on and chaired numerous private company, public sector and not-for-profit boards and audit and risk committees. Roger has also consulted with numerous boards, published numerous articles and conducted webinars on corporate governance, risk and strategy. He brings strong governance experience, commercial acumen, risk management and strategy skills combined with a passion for innovation and business development.
Currently, Roger chairs the Victorian Emergency Relief and Recovery Foundation, is a director and chair of the Audit and Risk Committee for Melba Support Services, and is an independent member of the Victorian Collaborative Centre for Mental Health and Wellbeing.
Roger is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has completed their Boardroom Mastery program, and is also a Fellow of the Governance Institute of Australia. Roger is currently a facilitator, assessor and writer for the Australian Institute of Company Directors and teaches their Company Directors Course,
as well as numerous other short courses.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee

BSci(Hons), DipLang, MD, FRACGP, FACRRM, DRANZCOG(Adv), GAICD

Louise is a rural GP obstetrician practising in a number of locations across Central Victoria where she delivers general practice, obstetric and sexual health services. After growing up in a small town, she has lived experience of the difficulties of accessing healthcare in rural and regional areas, and is dedicated to advocating for equitable health outcomes, regardless of geography. In addition to her clinical duties, she undertakes consulting, medical education and advocacy work. She is also a non-executive director and the current President Elect of the RDAV. Louise recently returned to study in 2024 and is undertaking a Masters of Public Health through The University of Melbourne.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Strategy, Policy and Stakeholder Engagement Committee Member
• Audit and Risk Committee Member

Snezana is a Human Resources leader with more than 15 years of experience in management, playing a pivotal role in driving team transformations across diverse industries, including FMCG, automotive, government, and non-profit sectors.

With a curiosity for business and its associated complexities, Snezana fosters collaborative partnerships to cultivate a highly motivated workforce that effectively executes strategic plans.

BCom, MPP, EdD, DipEd, Claritas/CFA Investment Certificate, MAICD

Rosemary has had a varied career as an academic teaching economics, public policy and industrial relations, and as a consultant, advocate, health union official and as a director. She brings strong governance and strategic skills to the Board, as well as knowledge and depth of experience in health policy, economics and investment.
Rosemary is currently a member of the Investment Committee of Cbus, a major Australian superannuation fund.
She was the Secretary of the Victorian Psychologists Association Inc for 20 years and was Assistant Secretary and Secretary of the Medical Scientists’ Association of Victoria, which counts dietitians and audiologists among its members.
Rosemary knows first-hand the difficulties in attracting and retaining health professionals in rural and regional Victoria.
Rosemary is a member of the Medical Association for the Prevention of War, and a committee member of Quit Nukes.

RWAV special responsibilities:
• Chair of the People and Culture Committee
• Governance Committee Member

With a rich background of consulting and in-house people and culture roles with the corporate, government and community sectors, Andrea is responsible for leading the implementation of RWAV’s People and Culture strategy, policies, processes, functions and team.

Andrea has significant experience in leading teams across culture, capability, diversity, equity, leadership, organisational development and learning programs as well as core human resources partnering.

With a strong focus on building and maintaining psychologically safe organisations, Andrea’s team is dedicated to ensuring that RWAV is a place where people can work well and be well at work.

Martin is a governance professional and lawyer with experience in private practice and in-house legal roles. He has been a company secretary for public and private sector organisations across a range of industries including VicTrack, Regis Healthcare Limited and Dairy Australia Limited. He holds Bachelor of Laws and Bachelor of Commerce degrees from the University of Melbourne, a Graduate Diploma in Applied Corporate Governance from the Governance Institute of Australia (GIA) and is a fellow of the GIA.

Social Work (BA Hons), DipSW

With a background in social work and a proven record in recruitment, project management, and business development, Jo brings strategic leadership and a wealth of experience in driving positive outcomes within the health, human services, and State Government sectors.

Jo specialises in managing health professional recruitment and outreach programs, including the More Doctors for Rural Australia and 3GA programs. Her focus is on implementing innovative workforce strategies and clinical governance to bolster RWAV’s mission of enhancing healthcare accessibility in rural and regional Victoria.

Having previously excelled at RWAV, Jo spearheaded successful internal change initiatives while fostering strong relationships with external stakeholders. Her efforts consistently align with RWAV’s strategic direction, ensuring a cohesive approach to driving impactful change.

Beyond her professional expertise, Jo’s passion lies in uniting communities and championing positive transformations in rural healthcare in Victoria.

RN, GradDip(Health Promotion), PRINCE2, Mini MBA

Kate is a Registered Nurse highly experienced in health promotion and project management. Her people and program management skills enable her to be agile and adaptable while maintaining an outcomes focus on improving quality access to primary healthcare.

Kate’s extensive experience working with all levels of government, the community and stakeholders across the sector have provided her with insights into the challenges rural communities and health professionals face. Kate has led the design and delivery of many innovative and strategic health promotion and grants programs, supporting better access to health services, health information and activities across communities. Whilst at RWAV, Kate has led the transformation of the RWAV grants program, enhanced the administration of a number of programs and developed the RWAV allied health portfolio. She has also led the development of the RWAV research program of activities.

Having worked at RWAV since 2020, Kate will continue positively influencing the rural healthcare workforce and access to services.

Msc (Fin), FCCA, FGIA, CA

Shay brings over 20 years of financial
management experience in commercial and not-for-profit organizations. He has a
rich and varied experience in multiple finance and leadership roles in the
United Kingdom and Australia, including CFO, GM Finance & IT, Commercial
Manager Operations, Finance Manager and Accountant.

His extensive leadership experience is
augmented by an FGIA, FCCA, CA, a Masters in Finance and an undergraduate degree in
accounting and finance.

Lauren Cordwell

Chief Executive Officer

BHlthSci(Hons) MPH PostGradDipMgt GAICD AFCHSM

Lauren Cordwell is the Chief Executive Officer at RWAV. Lauren has been an integral part of the RWAV team since 2018, demonstrating a remarkable strategic vision to improve access to health care in rural Victoria. As an experienced senior executive and health policy analyst, she is committed to finding practical solutions to address the challenges preventing communities in rural Australia from accessing affordable and safe healthcare. For over 20 years, Lauren has designed and implemented innovative programs with communities, health professionals and government agencies that continue to have a lasting benefit. Many of these programs relate to primary healthcare, general practice, workforce, First People’s health and community engagement. 

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