What Is a SIRA-Approved Psychologist? NSW Workers’ Compensation Explained
A SIRA-approved psychologist is a psychologist the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA) has approved to treat injured workers under the New South Wales workers’ compensation scheme. That approval sits on top of AHPRA registration rather than replacing it, so a psychologist can be fully registered to practise anywhere in Australia and still not be approved to treat workers in NSW. If you’ve been told to find a SIRA-approved psychologist, this article covers what the approval means, how treatment gets approved and paid for, and what the process looks like from your side of it.
What SIRA approval actually means
SIRA is the regulator for workers’ compensation in New South Wales. Under the scheme, certain allied health practitioners have to be approved by SIRA before they can provide services to injured workers. Psychologists sit in that group, alongside physiotherapists, chiropractors and osteopaths.
To be approved, a psychologist needs general registration with AHPRA, has to complete SIRA’s allied health practitioner training programme, and has to apply in writing and meet the conditions of approval. Approval runs for three years before it needs renewing.
Worth noting: this is an administrative approval to work within a compensation scheme. It isn’t a clinical specialty or a higher qualification, and on its own it tells you nothing about a psychologist’s therapeutic approach or the presentations they commonly work with. Those are still worth asking about separately.
How treatment is approved and paid for
Two things need to happen before treatment starts.
First, treatment needs a referral from your nominated treating doctor. That’s the doctor managing your claim, usually your GP. You can still make the first contact with a psychologist yourself, and plenty of people do, but the referral that lets treatment start comes from your nominated treating doctor.
Second, your psychologist submits an Allied Health Treatment Request (AHTR) to the insurer. This is the pre-approval step. It sets out what treatment is being proposed and why, and the insurer approves a block of sessions on that basis. In most instances, you will get pre-approval from your insurer for an initial session before the psychologist needs to submit an AHTR. When that block is used, a further AHTR is submitted if more treatment is needed. Treatment can’t begin before the AHTR is approved, so there’s usually a gap between the referral and the first session.
Fees are set by SIRA rather than by the individual psychologist, and the insurer pays the psychologist directly. For an accepted claim there’s no gap payment and no Medicare rebate involved, because the treatment is funded through the claim rather than through Medicare. SIRA publishes the current psychology fees and practice requirements on its website. If you are looking at psychology costs outside a claim, the cost of seeing a psychologist in Australia is covered separately.
What the process looks like from your side
In practice the sequence usually runs like this:
- You lodge a claim and it’s accepted.
- Your nominated treating doctor refers you for psychological treatment.
- You or your case manager find a SIRA-approved psychologist with availability.
- You see the psychologist for an initial assessment session.
- Your psychologist submits an AHTR and the insurer approves a block of sessions.
- Sessions begin, and are billed directly to the insurer.
If you’re already partway through this and unsure where things sit, your case manager can usually tell you whether an AHTR has been submitted and what’s been approved. SIRA also publishes a guide for allied health practitioners setting out how the scheme works.
Psychological injury claims and physical injury claims
Workers’ compensation psychology covers two fairly different situations.
The first is a primary psychological injury, where the injury being claimed for is itself psychological. That includes work-related stress, anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress after a workplace incident, and adjustment difficulties connected to something that happened at work.
The second is psychological support alongside a physical injury. Someone recovering from a serious physical injury may also be managing chronic pain, loss of function, uncertainty about returning to work, or low mood connected to a long recovery. Psychological treatment can be funded as part of that claim too. Both are funded under the scheme.
Telehealth and NSW workers’ compensation
Psychological treatment under the scheme can be delivered by telehealth. For injured workers that often removes a practical barrier, because travel can be difficult during recovery, particularly with a physical injury or where fatigue and pain make a commute hard to sustain.
It also widens the pool. A worker in a regional area isn’t limited to the psychologists who happen to practise nearby and have availability, which matters in a scheme where waiting for an appointment can hold up treatment that’s already been approved.
Frequently asked questions
What does SIRA-approved mean for a psychologist?
It means SIRA has approved that psychologist to provide services to injured workers under the NSW workers’ compensation scheme. It’s an approval to work within the scheme, granted for three years at a time, and it’s separate from AHPRA registration.
Is a SIRA-approved psychologist the same as a WorkCover psychologist?
People often use the terms interchangeably, but WorkCover NSW no longer exists as a single body. In 2015 its functions were split between SIRA (the regulator), icare (the insurer) and SafeWork NSW (workplace safety). In NSW, what people mean by a WorkCover psychologist is usually a SIRA-approved psychologist. In Queensland, WorkCover Queensland is still the insurer, and providers are registered with WorkCover Queensland rather than SIRA, which the article on WorkCover Queensland psychology covers.
Do I need a referral to see a psychologist through NSW workers’ compensation?
You can contact a psychologist directly to ask about availability, and Veronica accepts enquiries that way. For treatment to begin under the scheme, though, you need a referral from your nominated treating doctor, and the psychologist then submits an Allied Health Treatment Request to the insurer for approval.
Who pays for psychology sessions under a workers’ compensation claim?
The insurer pays the psychologist directly for an accepted claim, at the fees set by SIRA. There’s no gap payment for you, and Medicare isn’t involved.
How many psychology sessions does workers’ compensation cover in NSW?
There’s no single fixed number in the way Medicare caps sessions per calendar year. The insurer approves a block of sessions in response to an Allied Health Treatment Request, and a further request is submitted if more treatment is needed.
Can I see a psychologist by telehealth on a NSW workers’ compensation claim?
Yes. Psychological treatment under the scheme can be delivered by telehealth, which can make consistent attendance more workable during recovery.
Getting started
If you have a NSW workers’ compensation claim and are looking for a psychologist, Veronica West is SIRA-approved to provide psychology services to injured workers in New South Wales, and is also a registered WorkCover Queensland provider. Sessions are delivered by secure telehealth. You can read more on the workers’ compensation psychology page, see what to expect from sessions under a claim, or get in touch with your claim details and any questions.