PACCS July update

Meet Lilli Haig-wood the Personality Disorder and Autism Assessment Clinic (PAACS) Clinical Coordinator.

1. Tell me a little about yourself?

Lilli is an Occupational Therapist who has been working in healthcare. She has worked in a variety of settings over her career, including forensic mental health and forensic personality disorders, elderly mental health, elderly rehabilitation, pediatrics, homelessness and suicide prevention. At the start of her career, Lilli was sure she only wanted to work in mental health, but it turns out she just wanted to work with people in any therapeutic setting, particularly those who have been social marginalised!

2. Can you describe your role within PAACS?

Lilli is the Clinical Coordinator of the team and is responsible for being the first point of call to the service. She coordinates referrals, answers questions about referral criteria and the PAACS process in general. She also completes secondary consultations and manages the booking of consumer appointments. 

Lilli spends a lot of time chasing paperwork, sending appointment reminders, completing the KPI surveys and promoting the service. All this in 0.2EFT!

3. What key responsibilities are you focusing on?

Lilli is currently working hard to streamline systems and processes, so they are as efficient as possible. She also is all about getting our KPIs met – we need to see 50 consumers before December 2025, so keep those referrals coming!

4. What excites you the most about this new challenge?

It’s really exciting to be offering personality disorder and autism assessments to consumers free of charge. Many of these consumers have been misformulated and misunderstood and it’s really rewarding to support consumers to better understand themselves and their neurotype, so they can access support and maximise their occupational functioning and potential.

5. How does your previous experience contribute to this role?

Occupational therapists complete training in a variety of health challenges at university, including mental health conditions and developmental disorders. Since graduation, she has worked in a community pediatric OT role delivering interventions to address developmental challenges, as well as developing a strong foundational understanding of sensory processing/modulation within mental health settings. 

Lilli has a strong personal interest in advancing the understanding what neurodivergence looks like today, it’s comorbidity with personality disorders and complex post-traumatic stress disorder. She is really passionate about contributing to the development of neuroaffirming services and supporting those to understand their neurodivergence.

6. How can someone make a referral to the service?

Referral forms can be sent directly to the email [email protected]. Alternatively, you can phone for a discussion/consultation on mobile 0481 462 746 on Mon/Tues/Thurs.

Consumers complete consent forms, screeners and developmental histories with their treating team prior to be offered assessment appointments.