Donna is a Clinical Psychologist providing high quality psychological and counselling services. She studied for a Bachelor of Psychology with Honours at James Cook University, Townsville, and completed a postgraduate degree in Doctor of Psychology (Clinical) at Griffith University, Gold Coast. She is registered with the Psychology Board of Australia, AHPRA and holds memberships with the Australia Psychological Society, Fertility Society of Australia, the Australian and New Zealand Infertility Counsellors Association and the Australia and New Zealand Academy for Eating Disorders. She lives and works on the Gold Coast.
Donna is a caring psychologist who works collaboratively with clients to optimise benefits of psychological treatment.
She has a special interest in supporting individuals and their loved ones impacted by a cancer diagnosis and cancer related treatments. She has gained experience in hospital environments, a not for profit organisation and private practice, assisting individuals, partners and families impacted by cancer. Prior to opening InMind 4 Health, Donna worked for Cancer Council Queensland and gained specialised training and skills in cancer care; she continues to work collaboratively with Cancer Council Queensland and the Leukaemia Foundation Gold Coast branches and she has recently set up a networking group for health professionals involved in cancer care.
She also has a lengthy career background in health management and has devoted her entire working career to health, an area which continues to motivate her interest. She has a strong focus on a biopsychosocial model of health care and understands that one's psychological health is an important component of an individual's overall health and sense of wellbeing.
Donna works with adolescents and adults in her private practice and with adults undergoing assisted fertility treatments at both her private practice and Monash IVF Gold Coast.
Donna draws from a number of therapeutic evidenced-based frameworks - predominately: Intensive Short Term Dynamic Psychotherapy (ISTDP; attachment-based framework), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).
Her special interest areas include:
- Psycho-oncology
- Adjusting to life with cancer
- Managing treatment side-effects
- Prognosis uncertainty
- Fear of recurrence
- Impact on relationships
- Therapy related to end of life
- Chronic illness management
- Persistent pain
- Attachment difficulties
- Adjustment difficulties
- Anxiety disorders
- Obsessive-Compulsive and related disorders
- Depression
- Eating disorders
- Personality vulnerabilities
- Trauma and stressor-related disorders (incl PTSD)
- Loss, grief, anticipatory grief
- Fertility difficulties
- Sleep difficulties
- Emotional reactivity, anger management
- Communication difficulties
- Self-confidence
Donna’s doctoral research examined the clinical correlates of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and provided her with specialised skills in the treatment of complex anxiety disorders and comorbid presentations. The research results indicated that comorbid OCD and ASD was associated with significantly higher functional impairment across school, social and home domains, significantly more externalising disorders and more comorbid disorders overall than OCD without comorbid ASD. Additionally, ASD traits were associated with greater functional impairment above OCD severity. Findings from this research indicated that more targeted treatment protocols for children and adolescents with comorbid OCD and ASD would be helpful. Donna continues to work with her supervisory colleagues in this area of clinical expertise and research, and the research findings have been published.
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