Occupational Therapy

Our lead clinician Debashis (Debu) Mondal is an AHPRA registered Occupational Therapist.  He focuses on providing a fun and captivating environment where children are actively engaged in therapy.  His warm and kind-hearted spirit attracts even the most apprehensive child. 

Debu has 10 years of continuous clinical experience as a paediatric occupational therapist with two prominent early childhood intervention providers in Victoria.  Debu had 8 years prior experience working in an autism specialised school, mental health services, paediatric physical disability, community-based rehabilitation and spinal & stroke rehabilitation. 

Debu is an Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule  (ADOS ) trained therapist and he has practical experience working within a  renowned autism assessment clinic in Northern Melbourne. 

Debu has always had a passion for working with children and their families and a passion for learning.  He is certified in the SOS approach to feeding, specialised sensory based intervention, integrated listening, aquatic occupational therapy and many more areas of paediatric occupational therapy.   

Debu has an exceptional ability to connect with children who are usually on their own agenda and reluctant to engage. 

Debu is a loving father who enjoys his free time with family, traveling, going to sports & fishing  and sharing household activities with his wife.  

Dewi Pearce is a Registered Music Therapist (RMT) with the Australian Music Therapy Association, a member of AHPA (Allied Health Professions Australia).

Dewi takes pride in supporting children through the crucial years of their development, and has a passion for engaging families to help their child excel. Her expertise in using music as a therapeutic tool has helped children increase their communication skills, improve their motor skills, harness their emotional expression, and create new social connections.

Dewi has 16 years of experience as an RMT, with 14 of those years occurring in paediatric settings. She has provided clinical music therapy to hospital patients in two of the prestigious Parkville precinct hospitals. She worked for 4 years at a Special Development School, 8 years in community therapy settings, and worked 5 continuous years with a prominent early childhood intervention provider in the Hume region.

Dewi loves to see a child's face light up when they play an instrument or coordinate the dance moves to a favourite song or finally succeed in singing a song lyric. Music Therapy is nicknamed a "sneak therapy", because participants usually don't associate music with 'work' toward their therapy goals.

 Joanna (Jo) has an extensive background in allied health, working with adults and children with special needs. She has a great understanding of childhood development, and this has fuelled her passion in providing support to children and their families to reach their full potential. Jo is highly experienced in group facilitation, 1:1 AHA support, implementing therapy plan, peer support, parent education and service coordination. She is also the administrative assistant at Ability Beyond Therapy. 

A mother of two, Jo loves coffee, making handcrafted soap, and spending quality time outside with her family and pet chickens. She looks forward to continuing to support children and families at Ability Beyond Therapy.