Our Psychologists

Dr Elizabeth (Liz) Buikstra is a Registered Psychologist with 23 years’ experience in clinical, project management, research and leadership including a wide range of areas such as resilience, mental health, human factors, rural and remote mental health, and health generally.

 Liz has a unique perspective on rural and remote mental health due to her diverse background working and researching in many parts of Queensland. She understands the specific environment in which Health, Defence Force and Policing personnel operate due to her previous ADF and Queensland Health experience and family ties.  She recognises the need for treatment to be tailored for issues such as workplace stress, burnout, trauma, PTSD, grief and loss, interpersonal and family difficulties.

Age Groups

• Young Adults
• Adults
• Older Persons

Therapeutic Modalities

• Eye Movement DesensitiSation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Strengths-Based Therapy
• Behavioural Activation Therapy 

For more than 20 years, Simone has worked as a Registered Psychologist within the private, community, allied health and educational sectors. She is a Board Registered Supervisor and an Adjunct Lecturer at James Cook University. She has established a reputation of building genuine connections across cultures, age, vocational and societal groups.

Cultivating rapport with respect and unconditional support has enabled Simone to assist clients, both individually and in groups, with developing skills to circumnavigate the obstacles to a meaningful life and promote psychological flexibility.

Simone is well versed in cognitive, behavioural and mindfulness therapies, such as MCBT, DBT and ACT. She is also familiar with mind/body focused therapies, including Somatic EMDR. Bolstering these approaches with narrative and solution-oriented techniques ensures that all clients, from late adolescence through to mature adult hood, have a therapeutic intervention program driven by their individuality.

‘Become director of the mind, not directed by the mind’

Age Groups
• Young adults
• Adults
• Older persons

Therapeutic Modalities:
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Brief Psychodynamic Therapy
• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
• Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
• IFS/Ego State therapy
• Mindfulness/Mindsight
• Positive psychology
• Relationship therapies
• Somatic therapy

Ange is a compassionate, professional, and down-to-earth Registered Psychologist with a passion for working with adolescents and older individuals.

Ange employs a holistic, strength’s-based approach in her practice, focusing on collaborative treatment for various mental health concerns. Utilising an eclectic approach to therapy, she is interested in emotional regulation, complex behavioural issues, adjustment disorders, anxiety, depression, mood disorders, and broader societal challenges that impact wellbeing.

Ange has experience working with a broad range of evidence-based therapies including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT), and Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT). Her aim is to work collaboratively with clients to support them to achieve their goals with improved wellbeing.

Ange has experience working in Child and Youth Mental Health Service working with adolescents who have a history of trauma, eating disorders, school refusal, and/or experiencing chronic self-harm and suicidal ideation; while supporting families to improve attachment and relationships. More recently, she worked with the Older Persons Mental Health Service supporting older individuals with adjustment, grief and loss, anxiety, depression, and mood disorders.

Ange holds a Bachelor of Behavioural Studies (Psychology) and Graduate Diploma Psychology (Advanced).

Dr Annelies is a Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist originating from Belgium, who moved to Australia in 2017. Dr Annelies finished the training as a Psychiatrist and Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist in the Netherlands in 2004 where she had a special interest in diagnosing and treating ADHD, ASD and other neurodevelopmental disorders until moving to Australia in 2017. She believed then, and still believes, in medication to treat mental health disorders but also in non-pharmacological strategies with the child and the important people around them including mindfulness and the collaborative problem-solving method (Ross Greene). In Australia, Dr Annelies has worked treating children's mental health problems caused by traumatic events, such as (complex) PTSD, Reactive Attachment Disorder and Dissociative Disorders. Dr Annelies again believes that medication can have a role in the treatment of these disorders, however, that therapeutic interventions and non-pharmacological strategies are equally important for the child and family's healing and recovery. 

Further Description: 

Dr Annelies completed her training as a medical doctor in Belgium in 1999 and then moved to the Netherlands where she completed her training as a Psychiatrist and Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist in 2004. For 14 years she provided specialised care in assessing and treating children and young people with ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorders, neurodevelopmental disorders, and their comorbidities, both in a clinical and out-patient setting. Dr Annelies worked passionately for 5 years as the Clinical Director of a day-clinic facility for children with severe mental health problems, where she pioneered a clinical enhancement program informed by the well-known collaborative problem-solving method (Ross Greene). Dr Annelies believes that medication can be helpful in the treatment for children and young people with ADHD and ASD, but also believes that therapeutic interventions and non-pharmacological strategies, like family work and skill development in the child, as well as the important people around and raising them, are equally important.

In Australia, Dr Annelies has worked for Queensland Health, treating children's mental health problems caused by traumatic events, such as (complex) PTSD, Reactive Attachment Disorder and Dissociative Disorders. Dr Annelies developed a keen interest in this area and has further trained in different therapeutic modalities (EMDR, Theraplay, DDP, Play Therapy), and completed a 12-month long, international certification course for treating complex PTSD with Bessel Van Der Kolk (2019) and an international 12-month long certification program in treating dissociative disorders in children and youth (2024, Waters and Marks). Dr Annelies again believes that medication can have a role in the treatment of (complex) PTSD, however, that therapeutic interventions and non-pharmacological strategies like attachment-based therapy (Theraplay, DDP) and individual treatment delivered in a playful way, like EMDR and dissociation treatment, are equally important for the child and family's healing and recovery. 

Age Groups:

• Children and Adolescents (0-17 yrs)

Therapeutic Approaches and Modalities:

• Theraplay - D(yadic) D(evelopmental) P(sychotherapy)
• EMDR - Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing
• Play Therapy
• Collaborative Problem Solving Method
• Dissociation Work
• Mindfulness
• Assessment
• Medication Therapy

Jack is a Registered Psychologist with a special interest in complex trauma (CPTSD), dissociative disorders and addiction. Jack works from a standpoint of collaboration and compassion, emphasising working at his clients’ pace. He focuses both on managing symptoms and understanding and treating their underlying causes.

Jack primarily works using a combination of Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR), parts-work (Structural Dissociation model), and Sensorimotor Psychotherapy (a somatic modality). Jack has completed advanced training in EMDR to allow for work with more complex presentations including dissociation. Jack has also completed specific training in integration work with psychedelic experiences and transpersonal psychology. He additionally has training in Polyvagal Theory, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) and Schema Therapy.

Jack has 14 years’ experience working in the mental health and social work fields, including significant experience working in remote areas and with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Jack previously taught psychology at James Cook University as both a lecturer and subject coordinator.

He has completed a Bachelor of Psychology with Honours, a Masters of Professional Psychology and a PhD, publishing peer-reviewed articles focusing on intergenerational trauma, trauma recovery, and the benefits of mindfulness. Jack is a member of the EMDR Association of Australia, the Australian Association of Psychologists, and is registered with the Sensorimotor Psychotherapy Institute.

Collette is a compassionate and empathetic psychologist who takes a strength-based approach to therapy. She values a holistic and systematic view of mental health, recognising the interconnectedness of physical health, nutrition, and the influence of family and social dynamics on overall wellbeing. Her main areas of interest include adjustment disorders, anxiety disorders, mental health, and trauma related concerns including PTSD.

Collette is committed to working collaboratively with her clients, placing emphasis on supporting those who are new to therapy or hesitant to seek psychological support.Collette is dedicated to creating a safe, supportive, and trusting therapeutic space where clients feel comfortable and respected. She is passionate about understanding how mental health challenges and other presenting issues affect her clients’ daily lives and overall wellbeing.

Her approach combines thoughtful treatment planning with personalised, evidence-based interventions tailored to each client’s unique needs. Drawing on a range of modalities including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Schema Therapy, and Trauma-Focused Therapies, Collette helps clients regulate emotions, build resilience, and enhance their quality of life.

She is deeply committed to fostering compassion and offering the support clients need to work through life’s challenges and create meaningful, lasting change. Collette has 20 years of experience working as a registered psychologist, including nearly 15 years of experience working in forensic mental health. Her work has primarily been with adult men aged 18 and over. Since moving into private practice, Collette has broadened her focus to include both males and females in their late teens, as well as adult women. Collette holds a Bachelor of Psychology (Honours).

Age Groups:

• Older adolescents
• Adults

Treatment Modalities

• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Schema Therapy
• Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)
• Behaviour Therapy (BT)
• Cognitive Therapy (CT)
• Psychodynamic Therapy
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
• Mindfulness

Ashley is a Clinical Psychology Registrar who completed her Clinical Psychology Masters at Central Queensland University  Rockhampton, with thesis research exploring bariatric surgery patient’s wellbeing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

She previously completed a Master of Professional Psychology degree at UNE and bachelor’s degree in psychology at JCU, which included a thesis component focused on the benefits of psychological interventions for bariatric patients. She also has an Honours degree in Anthropology, to enable a greater understanding of cultural practices and diversity.

She prefers a person-centred approach, is interested in the story and narrative of each individual and uses evidence-based strategies. She has worked in various positions in public and not-for-profit health settings, working with people of all ages and backgrounds with various presentations including depression, anxiety, stress, gender identity, trauma and adjustment. She has worked in many areas of health such as older persons, paediatrics, rehabilitation, orthopaedics and renal services.

Ashley is experienced in psychometric testing and screening for children and adults. Her special interests include education, cultural psychology and bariatric psychology. She has presented her research on the benefits of psychological counselling for bariatric surgery patients at many national and international conferences and is particularly passionate about this area.

Ashely is trained in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

Therapeutic modalities:
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)

Age groups:
• Children
• Adolescents
• Young adults
• Adults
• Older P\persons

Jackie is a Registered Psychologist with experience in psychological assessment and measurement, counselling, and provision of evidence based psychological treatments. Jackie has experience working with people from across the lifespan and diverse groups, over a broad range of psychological illnesses. Jackie has an interest in psychometric testing and working with those who experience difficulty as a result of symptoms associated with illnesses including depression, anxiety, stress, trauma, addiction and chronic pain.

Principles most important to Jackie are empowering people by providing individually tailored tools and guidance to support prosperity and wellbeing with compassion, open and honest communication, integrity and respect.

Jackie adopts a holistic, recovery focused approach when collaborating with clients to develop treatment planning and interventions, ongoing monitoring of treatment goals and relapse prevention. Jackie applies evidence-based strategies including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT), Motivational Interviewing (MI), Mindfulness and Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT).

Following a successful career in the mining sector working in Fly-in-Fly Out (FIFO) roster arrangements for 15 years in Occupational Health & Safety, Jackie transitioned towards a fulfilling career as a Psychologist, enabling her to help support those in need within the FNQ community. Jackie has experience working for not for profit and private organisations providing psychological assessments, counselling, interventions, safety planning and relapse prevention to assist those experiencing depression, anxiety trauma, career burnout., workplace issues, chronic pain and addiction in both individual and group settings.

Age Groups:

• Adolescents
• Adults
• Older Adults

Treatment Modalities

• Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT)
• Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT)
• Behaviour Therapy (BT)
• Cognitive Therapy (CT)
• Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT)
• Motivational Interviewing (MI)
• Mindfulness

Bernadette is a passionate and empathetic clinical psychologist who takes a strength-based approach working with families, adults, adolescents and children. Bernadette’s focus is on a range of psychological testing and treatment planning for mental health conditions, emotional regulation and behavioural problems. She has dual master degrees in Forensic Mental Health and Clinical Psychology.

Age Groups
• Children
• Adolescents
• Young Adults
• Adults

Tamera is a Registered Psychologist with 20 years of professional experience working with children, adolescents, adults, and families. Through her down to earth, easy-going, and thoughtful manner, Tamera’s primary focus is on building a strong therapeutic relationship with a focus on the personal progress for her clients. Encouraging clients to improve their personal self-awareness and self-mastery of emotional skills. She is experienced in working with many presenting issues including mental health issues, realtionship problems, stress, burnout, and work life balance.

Tamera uses evidence-based interventions and strategies to provide quality and professional psychological therapy.

Age Groups

• Adolescents
• Young Adults
• Adults

Therapeutic Modalities

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)
• Solutions Focused Therapy
• Client-Centred Therapy
• Narrative Therapy
• Mindfulness
• Interpersonal Psychotherapy.