APS College of Clinical Psychologists

Western Australian Committee Information

The following members of the College State Section Committee have been elected by members of the College of Clinical psychologists in a particular State. This is a sub-Committee of the College National Committee. Please feel free to contact the College State Section Committee members with any queries or suggestions about the activities and events which they organise for members of this College in this State.

Chair

Mr Ozgur Yalcin
Oz has worked extensively across multiple psychiatric settings in both clinical and management roles. He has a specialist interest in personality disorders, PTSD, and complex trauma, and uses a range of evidence-based treatments including EMDR and schema therapy within a broader framework of psychodynamic psychotherapy. In addition to operating a busy practice, he is a sessional academic teaching theory and clinical practice to psychology undergraduates and clinical master’s students.

Oz completed his Bachelor of Psychology (First Class Honours) at Curtin University and Master of Applied Psychology (Clinical Psychology) at Murdoch University. He is in the final stages of his PhD which is evaluating the clinical utility of the Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ).

Chair-Elect

Dr David Preece
Dr David Preece is a clinical psychologist and academic. He is a clinical lecturer at Curtin University where he is the Director of the Perth Emotion & Psychopathology Lab. David’s main research and practice interests are in the assessment, understanding, and treatment of emotional disorders, with a particular focus on the role of emotional awareness (alexithymia) and emotion regulation difficulties. He has developed several widely used measures of emotional functioning, including the Perth Alexithymia Questionnaire (PAQ) and Perth Emotion Regulation Competency Inventory (PERCI). David has been a member of the APS since 2015. He is the lead for the Membership Portfolio within the national APS Clinical College committee, and is also the Chair Elect of the WA APS Clinical College committee.

Secretary

Dr Jason Sharbanee
Jason is a lecturer in Psychology at Curtin University, where he teaches psychotherapy to postgraduate trainees, and conducts research into the process of change during psychotherapy.

He is also certified as the local institute-based trainer in Emotion Focused Therapy, and delivers psychotherapy trainings through the Western Australian Institute of Emotion Focused Therapy (waieft.com.au). He maintains a private practice a Clearhealth.

Jason specialises in Emotion Focused Therapy and experiential therapies generally, for individuals, couples and groups across a range of presenting issues. He was trained and supervised by some of the leading developers of EFT, Leslie Greenberg and Jeanne Watson, over the last 10 years.

Treasurer

Dr Kaine Grigg
Phone: 0438600989
I am a Doctor of Clinical and Forensic Psychology and an AHPRA Board Approved Supervisor. I completed a Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Psychology, Specialising in Forensic Psychology, at Monash University.

I am the Founder of K A Grigg Consulting Pty Ltd, a Board Director of zero2hero and ConnectGroups, and a Clinical Psychologist with the Department of Health WA.

I have a wealth of clinical experience and knowledge across a variety of settings, including working with children, adolescents, and adults; individuals impacted by substance abuse and trauma; and those with offence histories. I have worked as a Youth Worker, Outreach Worker, and Psychologist in both clinician and supervisor roles.

Committee Member - PD

Miss Zoe Griffin

Committee Member

Dr Kate Tonta
Dr Kate Tonta is a clinician as well as an academic with a specific interest in supporting people who self-injure. Kate’s research has focused on understanding the cognitive and emotional factors that contribute to the onset and maintenance of non-suicidal self-injury, and she has also worked in clinical and research contexts identifying and responding to suicide risk. Kate is also a lecturer at Curtin University teaching into the Master of Psychology (Professional) in the areas of adult psychopathology and interventions, and works as a clinical psychologist registrar at the Centre for Clinical Interventions with adults with mental health disorders including anxiety and depression.

Student Representative

Ms Dominique Cleary
Dominique is a PhD (Clinical Psychology) candidate and has recently completed her Master of Clinical Psychology at the University of Western Australia.
Her PhD research with Telethon Kids Institute works with the Autism Team to investigate the early developmental period of infants with a family history of ASD, the experiences of parents who have a child diagnosed with an ASD, and investigating the potential of an early parent-mediated intervention focussed on working with parents to best support their baby's early social and communication abilities.
She has worked clinically in a range of settings including community and hospital settings, with a range of populations, and is looking towards commencing a registrar program as she completes her PhD.

Student Representative

Ms Kelly Cusworth

Student Representative

Mr Ethan Luxton

Student Representative

Miss Zoe Waters
Zoe is an enthusiastic and passionate fourth year PhD candidate and Master of Clinical Psychology student at the University of Western Australia under the supervision of A/Prof Ashleigh Lin and Dr Yael Perry at the Telethon Kids Institute, and A/Prof Jeneva Ohan at the University of Western Australia. Her PhD focuses on the existence and effects of stigma and self-stigma in young people who are at ultra-high risk for psychosis, and how best to measure it, and alleviate the negative consequences produced by it. Her clinical and research interests centre around improving outcomes for young people who are at risk of, or are experiencing, serious mental illness, with a particular interest in schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Zoe is currently completing her final placements for the Master of Clinical Psychology program, and is excited to embark upon her registrar training.