A Guide to DVA-Funded Psychology Services on the Gold Coast
How veterans and their families can can get psychology support on the Gold Coast
Psychologist Hannah
8/26/20266 min read
A Guide to DVA-Funded Psychology Services on the Gold Coast
Service changes people. It can also change how you show up as a parent once you are home, at the school pick-up, during a meltdown at bath time, or in the quiet moments when your child asks a question and you find yourself somewhere else entirely. If you are a veteran on the Gold Coast searching for "DVA psychologist near me" or "veteran family therapy Gold Coast," this guide is for you.
Mindaras Psychology Clinic is based in Helensvale and works with families across the Northern Gold Coast, including Coomera, Oxenford, Pacific Pines, Hope Island, Upper Coomera, Ormeau and Nerang. While our focus is children and families, we understand that a child's wellbeing is deeply tied to the wellbeing of the parent raising them, and for many veteran families, that means untangling how service-related experiences show up in the home, in parenting, and in a child's own development.
Why This Matters for Veteran Parents
Research into military and veteran families has consistently found that a parent's PTSD symptoms are associated with real difficulties in the parent-child relationship, not because veteran parents love their children any less, but because specific symptoms get in the way. A review of the literature found that PTSD symptom clusters including avoidance, emotional numbing, and irritability were linked with parent-child relationship difficulties, and that increases in a parent's PTSD symptoms over time were associated with reduced parenting satisfaction and warmth (Osborne et al., 2017).
In a qualitative study where veteran parents were asked directly about their own experience, veterans described how their PTSD symptoms affected parenting through emotional withdrawal and difficulty engaging, and also described their children's reactions, including hurt, confusion and, in some cases, children mimicking a parent's avoidant behaviours (Ahmadi et al., 2016). Other research has found that avoidance and emotional numbing symptoms in particular were the most strongly linked to impaired parent-child relationships, more so than hyperarousal or intrusive symptoms alone (as reviewed in Osborne et al., 2017).
None of this is about blame. It is about recognition. If you have noticed yourself pulling back from your kids, snapping more than you would like, or feeling like you are going through the motions of parenting rather than truly present in it, you are not failing. You are describing a well-documented and treatable pattern, and support exists specifically for this.
What DVA-Funded Psychology Actually Covers
One of the biggest barriers to veterans and their families getting support is simply not understanding what they are entitled to. Here is a plain-language breakdown.
If you hold a DVA Gold Card, you can access psychology services for any condition, mental or physical, without needing to prove it is service-related, and Gold Card holders are not subject to the standard Medicare session cap that applies to most therapy clients (Therapy Hub Australia, 2026). A GP referral is generally required, and each referral covers a treatment cycle of up to 12 sessions or 12 months, whichever comes first, after which a new referral can be issued if further support is needed (Clear Path Veterans, 2026).
If you hold a DVA White Card, you can access mental health treatment for any mental health condition under the Non-Liability Health Care (NLHC) arrangement, even if that specific condition has not been formally accepted as service-related (AskMyGP, 2026). This is one of the most underused entitlements available to veterans, since many White Card holders assume mental health support is only available for their accepted conditions.
If you are a partner or dependent child of a veteran, family support is available through Open Arms, DVA's dedicated veterans and families counselling service. Open Arms provides free counselling to partners and dependent children under 26 of veterans experiencing issues connected to the veteran's service, without requiring a DVA card or a referral (Department of Veterans' Affairs, 2026). This includes parenting-focused group programs and family-oriented support alongside individual counselling (Department of Veterans' Affairs, 2026).
No gap fees, with a registered provider. Whether treatment is billed through your Gold or White Card or accessed through Open Arms, eligible veterans and family members should not be paying out of pocket when seeing a DVA-registered provider (ClearAccess Psychology, 2026). It's worth checking with any clinic upfront whether they are DVA-registered and can bill DVA directly, as not all psychology practices are.
How to Get Started
Check which card you hold, or whether Open Arms is the more relevant pathway for you or your family member.
See your GP for a referral if you are using your Gold or White Card. Let them know you would like to see a DVA-registered psychologist, and mention specifically if parenting or family functioning is part of what you want to work on.
Contact Open Arms directly on 1800 011 046 if you want family or parenting-focused support and do not require a card or referral to begin.
Book your first appointment and bring your referral along, where applicable.
Where Mindaras Fits In
It's worth being upfront about this. Mindaras is not currently a DVA-registered provider, so we are not able to bill DVA directly for a veteran's own Gold Card or White Card treatment. For that side of things, your GP can refer you to a DVA-registered psychologist, or you can contact Open Arms directly on 1800 011 046 for free, no-referral support for yourself or your family.
What Mindaras does offer is support for your children. Our team has extensive experience working with children who have experienced trauma, including trauma connected to family stress, disrupted routines, and the ripple effects of a parent's own difficult experiences. Many veteran families find it helpful to have their own DVA-funded treatment running alongside dedicated, separate support for their kids, so that children have their own space to process what they may have picked up at home, rather than only being addressed indirectly through a parent's therapy. Sessions for children at Mindaras are accessed privately or, where eligible, through a Medicare-rebated Mental Health Care Plan from your GP.
Earlier support for children matters. Research on childhood trauma consistently shows that earlier intervention is linked to better recovery outcomes, while delays are associated with a greater risk of more entrenched difficulties later in life (Chen et al., 2018).
We take a genuinely warm, non-judgemental approach with every family we work with. If you are a veteran parent, you do not need to have it all figured out before you reach out. You just need to be willing to ask the question, for yourself through the DVA pathways above, or for your children, through us.
Explore What Mindaras Offers
Alongside support that considers the whole family, Mindaras offers a full range of psychological services in Helensvale, including trauma and EMDR therapy, anxiety and mood support, ADHD and ASD assessments, and parenting support, all grounded in evidence-based practice and tailored to your family's specific circumstances.
Get in Touch
If you are a veteran parent on the Gold Coast wondering whether things could feel different at home, for you and for your kids, reach out to Mindaras Psychology Clinic through our Contact page. We can talk you through how our children's and family services work, point you toward the right DVA pathway for your own care, and help you figure out where to start. Take a look through the rest of our website to see the full range of services we offer the Northern Gold Coast community. Your family deserves support that understands where you have been and helps shape where you are headed.
References
Ahmadi, S. J., Meyer, L. B., Nazarov, A., Lee, D. J., Bonanno, G. A., & Vasterling, J. J. (2016). Veterans' perceptions of the impact of PTSD on their parenting and children. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 8(1), 1-9. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000064
AskMyGP. (2026). DVA card guide: Gold, White & Orange. https://askmygp.com.au/learn/dva-card-guide
Chen, R., Gillespie, A., Zhao, Y., Xi, Y., Ren, Y., & McLean, L. (2018). The efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing in children and adults who have experienced complex childhood trauma: A systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, Article 534. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00534
ClearAccess Psychology. (2026). DVA psychologist near me: Gold Card & White Card psychology for veterans. https://www.clearaccesspsychology.com.au/dva-psychology
Clear Path Veterans. (2026). DVA White Card explained. https://www.clearpathveterans.com.au/news/dva-white-card-explained
Department of Veterans' Affairs. (2026). Open Arms group programs. Australian Government. https://www.dva.gov.au/news/latest-stories/open-arms-group-programs
Osborne, C., Vasterling, J. J., & Whalen, C. K. (2017). Parenting with PTSD: A review of research on the influence of PTSD on parent-child functioning in military and veteran families. Frontiers in Psychology, 8, Article 1101. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01101
Therapy Hub Australia. (2026). DVA allied health services. https://therapy-hub.com.au/dva
This article is for general information only and does not replace individual clinical or financial advice. DVA eligibility, coverage and processes are set by the Australian Government and are subject to change. Please confirm your specific entitlements with the Department of Veterans' Affairs, your GP, or by calling Open Arms on 1800 011 046 (24/7).
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call Open Arms on 1800 011 046 or 000 in an emergency.