Helen Mentha is a clinical psychologist committed to strengths-based practice and promoting respectful, empathic and productive conversations that matter. She supports clinicians, supervisors and managers from a range of professional backgrounds to learn, grow and make a meaningful contribution. She is one of Australia’s leading trainers of Motivational Interviewing.
Mentha Consulting
Services for helping professionals
Motivational Interviewing
“Motivational Interviewing is a particular way of talking with people about change and growth to strengthen their own motivation and commitment.” (William Miller & Stephen Rollnick, 2023)
Book
Someone Good to Talk To: Reflections on Motivational Interviewing in Practice (Helen Mentha, 2021) offers brief, accessible and practical insights into the change process and change conversations.
Upcoming workshops
MI Foundation Skills
A comprehensive, practical and interactive introduction to Motivational Interviewing
25 February & 4 March 2025 (online)
MI Developing Skills
An opportunity to refresh, consolidate and deepen Motivational Interviewing in action
30 July 2025 (online)
MI for Supervisors
Practical strategies for using and coaching MI within supervision with co-facilitator Dr Kylie McKenzie
TBA 2026 (in person, Melbourne)
Training & facilitation
A highly experienced and sought-after trainer, Helen runs workshops for organisations as well as a calendar of events for individual seeking professional development. She has built a strong reputation creating positive and interactive learning environments to reflect on current practice, develop skills and apply learning. Areas of specialisation include Motivational Interviewing and working with substance use.
Consultation
Workshops are just one part of workforce development. Consultation is available to help craft strategies that proactively address challenges and maximise available resources. Key areas of successful implementation include assessment, leadership, consultation, engagement, skill-development, resourcing and evaluation. Even small initiatives introduced before and after training can help support transfer to practice.
Programs & resources
Actively engaging people in their own behaviour change starts with conversations that focus on what matters to them. Assessment tools and program resources that are person-centred and informed by Motivational Interviewing can help support both clients and staff to explore possibilities and find a useful direction. Services include feedback and consultation on existing resources and the development of new resources.
Supervision
Supervision offers the opportunity to review our practice, receive support, challenge ourselves, and grow as professionals. The format is flexible, depending on individual needs, and may include case discussion, exploration of specific challenges or broader principles of practice, skill-development, and examination of our own experience of therapeutic process, the work and the broader system.
Skills coaching
We know the value of coaching and feedback in learning complex skills such as a sport or musical instrument. The same applies to honing our clinical communication skills or learning a discipline such as Motivational Interviewing. Skills coaching is tailored to the individual or group and is a collaborative process to identify aims, select appropriate learning methods and facilitate reflective process.
Mentoring
Working within helping professions raises personal challenges and diverse opportunities. Helen’s approach to mentoring offers a safe and curious place in which to navigate career paths, personal growth and creative possibilities within the work and beyond. While we might not resolve the question of what we want to do when we grow up, we can discover next steps and future directions.