Mental health and wellness tech company acquires WA’s largest private psychiatry practice.
Oqea Cares incorporating Salvado, is now the largest independent private psychiatry practice in Western Australia, with 12 psychiatrists providing critical mental health support to our community in need.
On 30th January 2023, mental health and wellness technology company Oqea Pty Ltd. acquired Adams House Holdings Pty Ltd., more commonly known as Salvado (Clinic). Oqea Cares incorporating Salvado, is an ever-expanding multidisciplinary mental health practice with an allied health team including psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, psychologists, counselors, drug and alcohol specialists, and physiotherapists.
In addition to providing traditional mental health and wellness face-to-face and telehealth services, the clinicians at Oqea Cares incorporating Salvado, routinely use digital technology to provide additional support to their clients.
“At Oqea Cares, we use an integrated mental health care model to assist our clients in reaching their goals and improving their mental health and wellbeing. Using the Oqea app and platform, we can support clients’ in-between appointments by connecting them with other health professionals or resources, such as articles and videos, that are available within the app. Additionally, clients can use the app to monitor their progress by tracking their wellbeing and goals. With consent, clinicians can then use the collected data to get a real-time picture of how their client is progressing appointment to appointment,” says Dr Murray Chapman, Director of Oqea and Consultant Psychiatrist.
Psychiatrists are the most sought-after mental health clinicians in Australia. According to a report from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, there were 3,615 psychiatrists in Australia or 13.7 psychiatrists per 100,000 individuals in 2019.
Waitlists are months long for an initial appointment and often many months longer for a diagnosis. Nowadays, it is common for individuals to see a team of health professionals who, in collaboration, will support the individual and address the nuanced nature of mental health concerns.
“By using the same platform and app, our multidisciplinary team can easily connect clients to clinicians in different disciplines, including psychologists, mental health nurses and physiotherapists, creating a personalised digital support team. This means we can help people find the support they need more effectively and efficiently, reducing the time delays associated with more traditional referral methods,” says Dr Chapman.
“The Oqea app and desktop portal were designed to improve clients’ connectivity to the support, tools and information they need to take the driver’s seat in their mental health and wellbeing journey. Through technology, we seek to provide interim support to individuals via the Oqea app in between appointments,” says Martyn Weir, CEO and Managing Director of Oqea.
Most Australians need more than the standard ten subsidised sessions on a Medicare Mental Health Care plan prescribed by a GP. For those with more complex mental health concerns, it can take years to overcome their symptoms with the support of a team of health professionals, friends, and families.
“We provide much-needed interim support to people via our app and platform while they wait for an appointment with a health professional. We strongly believe technology is a large part of the solution to remedy our broken mental health system. It enables us to put the person at the centre of their care, allowing them to take a proactive approach to their wellbeing and ultimately improving people’s lives by providing equitable access to mental health support through our app”, says Martyn.
Oqea’s overarching vision is to use digital technologies respectfully to improve connection and collaboration between people, health professionals, and their more extensive support networks, including friends, family and lived experience persons.
Contact Details:
Media support: maurice@oqea.com
Website: www.oqea.com/oqeacares
Phone: (08) 6559 6900