Dr Toula Tsovolos

MBBS (USYD) DCH FRANZCP CertChildPsych

 

Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist

 

Dr Tsovolos is a senior and experienced female specialist medical doctor in Psychiatry with expertise in the medical, psychopharmacological and psychological management of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Disorders.

 

Dr Tsovolos specialises in the assessment and medical treatment of Depression, Self-Harm, Anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorders, Intellectual Disability, Sexual Abuse, Eating Disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Psychosis, Personality Disorders, Tourette and Tic Disorders, Oppositional Defiant Disorder, Academic Anxiety and Forensic Psychiatry. 

 

Dr Tsovolos works exclusively within a bio-psycho-social therapeutic framework incorporating evidence-based psychotropic interventions alongside sound and scientifically researched psychotherapeutic principles (e.g. Cognitive Behaviour Therapy, Interpersonal Psychotherapy, Dialectical Behaviour Therapy, Maudsley Family Therapy, Parent Management Training, Emotions Based Social Skills Training).  Treatment recommendations and management approach is tailored to individual patient needs, working closely with families, carers, schools, psychologists, paediatricians and other health professionals where appropriate.  The provision of psychoeducation and a deep respect for patient autonomy underpins every clinical interaction.  

 

Dr Tsovolos obtained a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Sydney.  She was awarded the Faculty of Medicine AT Edwards Memorial Prize for her research dissertation in the Epigenetics of Anorexia Nervosa.  Dr Tsovolos completed her medical internship at Westmead Hospital, followed by training in General and Emergency Paediatrics at The Children's Hospital at Westmead, subsequently obtaining the postgraduate qualification of a Diploma in Child Health, awarded by the University of Sydney.  This was followed by registrar training in acute inpatient and outpatient community psychiatry in Adult, Perinatal and Old Age Psychiatry at Westmead, St George, Concord and allied Area Health Hospitals.  As a Psychiatry Fellow, Dr Tsovolos was the successful recipient of the competitive two year Scholarship Fellowship Grant in Child and Adolescent Training awarded by NSW Health Department, allowing the opportunity to pursue sub-specialist interests and further training in Developmental Psychiatry at The Children's Hospital at Westmead and Psychiatric Research in Adolescent Outcomes at the Rivendell Adolescent Unit, Concord Centre for Mental Health.

 

Dr Tsovolos worked as Consultant Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist for GP Psych Support, a patient management advice service for General Practitioners funded by the Australian Federal Government and managed by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP).  She is a Court appointed Expert Witness for the Family Court of Australia.  Dr Tsovolos has been involved in the teaching of Family Doctors and Psychiatry Trainee Doctors through the NSW Institute of Psychiatry where she has been an Essay and Examination Marker.  She has provided 'fly-in doctor' Paediatric and Adolescent Mental Health specialty clinics to rural, remote and Aboriginal communities and has worked in tertiary hospital Consultation-Liaison Child Psychiatry and Developmental Paediatrics as a Consultant Psychiatrist.

 

Dr Tsovolos is a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP), Member of the Faculty of Child & Adolescent Psychiatrists (FCAP), Member of the Intellectual Disability Interest Group (IDIG) and Member of the Neurodevelopmental and Behavioural Paediatric Society of Australasia (NBPSA).