What is this service?
Important notice: This service is not currently accepting new referrals.
Telepsychiatry gives you free access to a network of more than 40 experienced psychiatrists who work alongside a team of mental health professionals.
Many psychiatrists can provide consultations in different languages. If a psychiatrist does not speak your preferred language, an interpreter can be arranged through the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National).
The service focuses on assessment and treatment planning. After your initial assessment, the psychiatrist will provide a detailed treatment plan to guide your ongoing care.
Benefits
Telepsychiatry can help people access specialist mental health support without needing to travel.
Through the service, people may:
- access experienced psychiatrists via secure video consultations
- receive an assessment and treatment plan
- connect with a multidisciplinary mental health team
- access care closer to home
Eligible patients can receive up to three psychiatry consultations, followed by up to four additional sessions with a multidisciplinary mental health professional, for a total of seven sessions.
Eligibility
When referrals are open, the service is available for patients who:
- live in the Blue Mountains, Hawkesbury, Lithgow or Penrith areas
- are aged 8 years and older
- are experiencing mental illness
- are not currently engaged with public psychiatry services
- hold a Healthcare card, Family Healthcare card or Pensioner Concession Card, or identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Funding
This service is funded by the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.
Referrals
No new referrals are currently being accepted.
Funding for the 2025–2026 financial year has been exhausted, therefore from 4:00pm on Friday 28 November 2025, referrals for this service are closed. The service is expected to reopen later in the year when new funding becomes available. In the meantime, the following services may provide support:
Last updated: May 22, 2026 at: 12:42 pm