Getting a Psychology Referral Through Abby

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A psychology referral at Abby begins with a single GP telehealth consultation. During that appointment, your clinician completes a Mental Health Care Plan — the document that unlocks up to 10 Medicare-rebated psychology sessions per calendar year under the Better Access initiative. You receive the plan and the referral by secure message immediately after the consultation. From there, you choose a psychologist (we offer a curated list or you can nominate your own), book your first session, and your GP reviews progress at defined points. The consultation that creates your plan is bulk billed for eligible patients with a valid Medicare card.

The shape of the journey, at a glance

The path from deciding you'd like to see a psychologist to sitting in your first session has, historically, been harder in Australia than it needed to be. Long GP waits, the need for an in-person assessment, uncertainty about the cost — each step has turned people away at exactly the moment they were trying to reach out. Abby's job, in this part of the care pathway, is to take each of those steps and make it simple enough that the logistics do not compound the discomfort.

What follows is the full process. Not the marketing version. What actually happens.

Step 1: Book a GP consultation

You begin at abbyhealth.app/book. In the booking flow, you select a Mental Health appointment. This is a longer consultation than a standard GP visit — typically 30 to 40 minutes — because preparing a Mental Health Care Plan involves a structured clinical assessment, goal-setting, and treatment planning, not just a conversation about how you're feeling.

You can book a same-day or next-day appointment in most cases. The booking form will ask a few questions about the reason for your visit so your clinician can prepare. It's not a test, and there are no wrong answers — the questions simply help Abby AI, our medical AI, prepare a consult-ready brief for your clinician before the appointment begins. Abby AI does not diagnose or prescribe. It surfaces context so your clinician starts informed.

If you're a returning Abby patient, your previous clinician's notes are part of that brief. If you're new to Abby, only the information you provide at booking, and anything you choose to share during the consultation, informs the appointment. For how continuity works across appointments, see how Abby remembers you — continuity of care.

Step 2: The Mental Health Care Plan consultation

The appointment itself is delivered by phone or video — your choice. Your clinician, an AHPRA-registered GP with Better Access mental health skills training, will take a clinical history: what's been going on, how long it's been going on, how it's affecting daily life, any history of mental health care in the past, relevant family history, medical history, and current medications if any. Standard screening tools may be used where clinically useful.

The goal of the consultation is not to rush to a diagnostic label. It's to build a clinical picture accurate enough to match you to the right kind of support. From that picture, your clinician prepares a Mental Health Care Plan — a structured document that records the clinical summary, agreed treatment goals, and the type of psychology or allied mental health support that's being referred for. For more on what the plan contains, see how to get a Mental Health Care Plan online.

The consultation ends with a clear plan: you leave with an understanding of what's been agreed, what happens next, and when you'll be reviewed. The appointment is bulk billed for eligible patients with a valid Medicare card. You do not pay a gap or invoice for a standard MHCP appointment at Abby.

Step 3: Receiving your referral

After the consultation, the MHCP and the accompanying referral are generated and delivered to you by secure message through the Abby app. This usually happens within the same session or very shortly after — not days later. The referral travels with you: you can bring it to any Medicare-registered psychologist, anywhere in Australia.

The referral identifies the broad category of provider being recommended (a registered psychologist, a clinical psychologist, a mental health occupational therapist, or an accredited mental health social worker) and the number of initial sessions authorised, typically the first block of up to six. It also contains the clinical summary the psychologist needs to begin care without asking you to retell your story from the beginning.

If your clinician believes a specific kind of therapy is likely to help — for example, a particular evidence-based modality — that preference will be recorded in the referral. Final choice of modality sits with the treating psychologist, in discussion with you.

Step 4: Choosing a psychologist

You can use your referral with any Medicare-registered mental health provider in Australia. Abby maintains a curated list of psychologists who are familiar with the Abby model of care and who can be booked directly through the app. You can equally use your referral with a psychologist you already know, a practitioner recommended by someone you trust, or one you find through the Australian Psychological Society directory.

What matters more than where you find the psychologist is whether they're the right fit. The therapeutic relationship — the sense that the person in front of you understands you and that you can speak freely — is the single most important factor in whether therapy works. It's entirely reasonable to try one session with a psychologist, decide they're not the right fit, and ask your GP for an updated referral to a different provider. That is not a failure of the process. It is the process.

If cost matters to you — and it matters to many Abby patients — you can filter for providers who bulk bill their sessions under Better Access. Where a provider charges a private fee, Medicare rebates a fixed amount per session and the patient pays the difference as a gap.

Step 5: Your first psychology session

Your first session with your psychologist will look different from the MHCP consultation. It's a longer, less structured conversation focused on understanding what's brought you to therapy, what you'd like to work on, and how the therapist's approach fits. Many psychologists use the first session primarily for assessment and building the therapeutic alliance, with active therapy beginning from session two.

You don't need to prepare anything. You certainly don't need to arrive with a diagnosis or a plan. The psychologist has your MHCP and clinical summary — they begin informed.

Sessions typically last 50 to 60 minutes. They can be conducted in person or by telehealth; both attract Medicare rebates under the Better Access framework. For more on how Better Access sessions work, see Better Access initiative: your 10 sessions explained.

Step 6: GP review after the first block

Better Access is structured so that, after your first block of up to six psychology sessions, you return to your GP for a review. The review is itself a Medicare-billed consultation — bulk billed for eligible patients with a valid Medicare card at Abby — and its purpose is to consider how therapy is progressing, whether the plan should be adjusted, and whether the remaining sessions should go ahead.

At Abby, continuity of care means that the GP reviewing your plan has full context from your initial MHCP consultation and, where available, feedback from your psychologist. Abby AI prepares the brief for your reviewing clinician in the same way it did for your first consultation. If you prefer, you can see the same clinician who prepared your plan; if that clinician isn't available, the continuity is preserved through the clinical record. For more on how Abby's booking and continuity work, see how Abby remembers you — continuity of care.

Following the review, the remaining block of up to four sessions is released, taking the total to 10 individual sessions for the calendar year.

What happens if you need something different

Psychology referrals are not the right fit for every presentation, and 10 Medicare-rebated sessions are not always enough. Your GP at Abby will be clear with you about what's realistic within the Better Access framework and what sits outside it. Other support — crisis services, psychiatry, chronic disease management plans, group therapy, or ongoing GP-led mental health care — may be relevant in addition to, or in place of, standard psychology referral.

If your clinician believes a psychiatry assessment is warranted, they can prepare that referral as well. Psychiatry rebates operate under a separate framework. If your needs are more urgent than a scheduled appointment allows, your clinician will tell you clearly and direct you to the appropriate service — including emergency support where necessary.

For the broader picture of what telehealth can and can't safely do, see what telehealth can't do — safety limits.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take to get a psychology referral through Abby?

In most cases, you can book an MHCP appointment same-day or next-day, and the referral is sent to you by secure message immediately after the consultation. The whole process — booking to referral in hand — can fit inside a single morning.

Can I get a psychology referral without seeing a GP first?

Not under the Better Access framework. An MHCP, prepared by an eligible clinician, is required for Medicare-rebated psychology sessions. You can see a psychologist without an MHCP, but you will pay the private fee without a Medicare rebate.

Do I get to choose my psychologist?

Yes. Your referral can be used with any Medicare-registered mental health provider in Australia. Abby offers a curated list through the app, and you can equally nominate a psychologist of your own choosing.

What if my psychologist isn't the right fit?

It's common and entirely reasonable to change providers early on. Speak to your Abby GP; an updated referral to a different psychologist can be arranged without compromising your access to the remaining sessions in your calendar year.

Find Comfort. Abby Health. Knowing someone cares.