Personal Profile

Dr Kellee Poulsen is a clinical psychologist with extensive experience in treating a range of psychological difficulties in children, adolescents and adults.  Kellee graduated with a Bachelor of Science with first class honours and a Bachelor of Arts majoring in human movement studies and sociology from the University of Queensland (UQ).  She was then awarded a scholarship to complete her PhD and Masters in Clinical Psychology.  Kellee has been a registered Clinical Psychologist for over twenty years and is a member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and the APS College of Clinical Psychologists.

Prior to working in private practice, Kellee was employed in a diverse range of roles, with such experience contributing to her depth of knowledge and expertise in the field.  For over ten years, Kellee worked as a senior psychologist for the Mater Child and Youth Mental Health Service.  She spent many years in the Children’s hospital and emergency department, supporting young people living with medical conditions, such as diabetes, cystic fibrosis, and epilepsy, who were also experiencing emotional or psychological distress.  As such, Kellee has a great understanding of the challenges young people with chronic illnesses face and how best to support this population. 

Following the natural disasters of 2010, Kellee was appointed as the senior psychologist for the Statewide Recovery and Resilience team.  This position involved Kellee travelling around the state to towns such as Grantham, Roma, Mitchell and Bundaberg, assessing and treating children and adolescents for posttraumatic mental health conditions.  She was also deployed to Tasmania following the bushfires a couple of years after.  During this time, Kellee was able to indulge in one of her academic interests- research and published a study examining parent’s satisfaction with screening children for emotional difficulties in the school setting and whether such children subsequently accessed treatment.  Kellee was then seconded to the Royal Children’s Hospital where she supported adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer, a position she feels very privileged to have worked in.    

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Consistent with her passion for research and learning, Kellee worked as a lecturer at UQ for ten years and has published a number of research studies.  She also has experience working in the school setting and was fortunate to travel to the United Kingdom and Canda to train other psychologists in a parenting intervention.  Kellee has worked in private practice for the past ten years.  When she is not in the office, Kellee enjoys relaxing in the outdoors and dreaming of her next adventure with her favourite travel companions, her four young children. 

Kellee’s therapeutic style is compassionate and creative, and she places a high importance on building a strong therapeutic relationship with her clients. Kellee utilises evidence-based approaches to support child, adolescent, and adult clients with a range of presentations including:

• Depressive Disorders

• Anxiety Disorders

• Acute Stress and Post Trauma Responses

• Eating Disorders

• Body Image Concerns

• Parenting Difficulties

• School-Related Difficulties

• Adjustment to Living with a Medical Condition

• Bereavement, Grief & Loss 

• Cross-Cultural Concerns 

• Workplace Stress

Kellee has completed research across a vast array of clinical areas including diabetes management, disaster management, and chronic illness.

Research Publications

• Poulsen, K. M., Pachana, N. A., & McDermott, B. M. (2016). Health professionals' detection of depression and anxiety in their patients with diabetes: The influence of patient, illness and psychological factors. Journal of Health Psychology, 21, 1566-1575.

• Poulsen, K. M., McDermott, B. M., Wallis, J., & Cobham, V. E. (2015). School-based
  psychological screening in the aftermath of a disaster: Are parents satisfied and do their
  children access treatment? Journal of Traumatic Stress, 28, 69-72.

• Poulsen, K. M., & Pachana, N. A. (2012). Depression and anxiety in older and middle-aged adults with diabetes. Australian Psychologist, 47, 90-97.

• d'Emden, H., McDermott, B., Poulsen, K., & McGahan, G.  (2019). Protocol for psychosocial screening of adolescents and young adults with chronic illness.  Journal of Internal Medicine, 49, 1138-1145.