Dr. Stephen Spencer (PhD) co-founded Rest In Essence to meet a critical need in our community for high-quality of care mental health services. Stephen leads our growing, multi-disciplinary clinical team with an immediate focus on supporting the needs of young people and their families. Stephen completed a Bachelor of Nursing degree in 2009, and in 2011 he was awarded a First Class Honors Degree (Nursing) where he completed a research project that evaluated the Health Service’s Aggression Minimisation training program (PMVA). Following this, Stephen was awarded an Australian Postgraduate Award Scholarship and conducted a PhD research project titled: Nursing responses and interventions for episodes of distress in an acute child and adolescent inpatient unit: An Interpretive Descriptive study. Stephen was awarded his PhD in December 2017.

Stephen worked in an acute child and adolescent mental health inpatient unit for 12 years and his clinical experience includes the roles of Clinical Nurse Consultant, Paediatric Consultation Liaison Services, and Clinical Nurse Education. He is trained in Dialectical Behaviour Therapy and Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Psychosis in Young People and is a current member of the Australian College of Mental Health Nurses. He is also training and experienced with clinical supervision.

Stephen specialises in:

• Child, Adolescent, and Youth mental health
• Family support and psychoeducation
• Comprehensive Mental Health Assessment and Care Planning
• Behaviour support and safety planning
• Clinical supervision