Therapist Team

Kyle McBurney

Principal Psychologist | Performance Coach

B.PsychSci (Hons), CReC, MAPS
Memberships and Affiliations:
* Australian Psychological Society.
* Association of Applied Sports Psychology.
* Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).

Kyle is the Principal Psychologist and founder of Queensland Psychology Group; and currently offers Psychotherapy and Coaching services to adults, families and couples.

As a Generalist Psychologist, Kyle has special interests in the areas of complex interpersonal and family system focused presentations, developmental trauma, psychodynamic self-enquiry and high performance.

Understanding that with increased awareness comes choice; Kyle leans towards having an insight orientated and analytical approach within therapy room; however depending on his clients’ dynamic needs can often transition between a traditional process driven psychotherapy approach, as well as a short-term process of brief and focused psychological interventions.

Paying special attention to the therapeutic relationship and aligning with a person-centred approach; Kyle aims to facilitate a process where his clients understand what shaped them, recognize their own behavioural patterns, and introduce them to the psychological skills and insights required to thrive and flourish. To ensure treatment is tailored to each Client; Kyle tends to make use of a variety of therapeutic approaches. Some of these include Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Family Systems Therapy, Schema Therapy, Interpersonal Therapy, Psychodynamic Therapy, and Positive Psychology.

Captivated by what an effective psychotherapy process can do for his clients, Kyle identifies as a lifelong scholar of both the art and science of psychotherapy, and is passionate about walking alongside his clients towards meaningful and long-term change!

Availability: 4 Days Per Week – Calendar Open, with Extended Wait Times for New Clients

Dee Finato

Psychologist

B.PsychSci (Hons)
Memberships and Affiliations:
* Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).

Dee is a Psychologist with general registration who has been practicing in Mackay for 7 years. She works part-time in the private sector with QPG, with special interests in the areas of stress, anxiety, depression, adjustment, relationships and supporting overall health and well-being. Dee has clinical and non-clinical experience working across the lifespan in areas including Disability, Hospital and Health Care, and in Adult and Child and Youth teams within Community Mental Health settings. Drawing from a range of therapeutic approaches, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Schema Therapy, EMDR and Interpersonal Therapy, Dee engages with clients in a person-centred, strength based, and empathic manner.

Dee is passionate about working with clients to achieve meaningful change and accepts a number of referrals including but not limited to Medicare, Private Health, EAP, NDIS and Private Client’s. Dee’s clinical skills and commitment to her clients are very much aligned with Queensland Psychology Group’s focus on providing their clients with the highest quality care.

Availability: 2 Days Per Week – Calendar Open, to Existing and Previous Clients.

Sandra van Kerkwyk (née Don)

Psychologist

B.SocSci (Psych), PostGradDipPsych, AdvCert Systemic Family Therapy
Memberships and Affiliations:
* Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).

Sandra has been practicing as a Registered Psychologist in Mackay for over 8 years. She shares her time between Child and Youth Mental Health and the Private setting, with a passion for helping people across the lifespan overcome issues related to anxiety, worry, stress, depression, trauma, adjustment, relationship/family issues, and simply just processing aspects of life. Sandra integrates a range of evidence-based interventions to provide a tailored approach, working from an insight-oriented, relational, and systemic framework.

Sandra has an authentic and empathic therapeutic style to bring warmth and safety to the therapeutic relationship, assisting patients to make sense of their difficulties and create meaningful change.

Sandra also offers psychometric assessment, specifically IQ testing and adaptive behaviour assessments across the lifespan. This is useful in diagnosing intellectual disabilities, and in identifying cognitive strengths and weaknesses and planning intervention around this.

Sandra accepts Medicare, NDIS, and Private referrals, and offers patient appointments on Saturdays only.

Availability: 3 Days Per Week – Calendar Open, to Existing and Previous Clients.

Ashlee Pastega

Psychologist

B.PsychSci (Hons)
Memberships and Affiliations:
* Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).

Ashlee is a Psychologist with general registration. She has several years of clinical and non-clinical experience in the public sector working across the lifespan with children, adolescents, adults and older people. Ashlee has a special interest in working with issues related to stress, anxiety, depression, adjustment to illness or life change, and relationship difficulties.

She has experience using a number of evidence-based treatment modalities including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Interpersonal Therapy and Solution Focused Therapy.

Ashlee takes a person-centred approach to therapy and places a high importance on building strong therapeutic relationships with her clients. She is passionate about working collaboratively with clients to empower them to live more fulfilling and meaningful lives.

Availability: 2 Days Per Week – Calendar Open

Lee Herring

Psychologist

B.PsychSci (Hons)
Memberships and Affiliations:
* Australian Health Practitioner Regulatory Agency (AHPRA).

Lee is a Psychologist with general registration who works with adult clients. With a strong belief in everyone’s capacity for growth and change, Lee has a passion for creating space in the therapy room for meaningful self-reflection in order for her clients to tap into their innate capability for healing and transformation.

She has experience working therapeutically with clients with a wide range of concerns, including anxiety, stress, depression, addiction, chronic health conditions, self-esteem, confidence and assertiveness difficulties.

Lee presents with a well-crafted approach to therapy which is both compassionate and non-judgemental as well as strength-based. Within her person-centred approach Lee will look to utilise a range of evidence-based psychological treatments including but not limited to Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Dialectal Behaviour Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Mindfulness, Interpersonal Therapy and Solution-Focussed approaches.

Lee strives to empower her clients and encourages them to know that they are the masters of their own life, and with a commitment to healing, a little encouragement, and some helpful strategies, they can both navigate their way through challenging times and continue to grow.

Availability: 1-2 Days Per Week – Calendar Open, with Extended Wait Times for New Clients

Client Relationship Team

Mahney Forrest

Director

B.Ed (Prim), GradCert.Ed (EC)
An integral part of our Client Relationship Team, Mahney operates as our Director at QPG. With over a decade of leadership experience in the Education sector, Mahney is passionate about supporting our team, to ensure the Client journey is both an enjoyable and seamless process.

Kelly Thompson

Acting Practicing Manager


Kelly is usually the first friendly contact point of our Client Relationship Team. Kelly comes from a diverse background having worked in multiple industries including Defence, Education, Public Sector and Health. Kelly has over 15 years’ experience in the Allied Health industry and is committed to delivering a professional, empathetic service; to ensure the Client experience with QPG is a positive one.

Julieanne Bergmann

Receptionist

GradCert.Arts Management, B. Arts
Following a career in the Arts and Marketing, Julieanne has focused on her role as a mental health and trauma aware yoga teacher for the last ten years.

Julieanne is currently completing a Graduate Diploma in Psychology, with additional studies towards becoming a registered therapist on the horizon.