About us

Our Team

Alisa Hawkins

Senior Speech Pathologist/ Operations Manager

A/Prof Cate Madill

Principal Speech Pathologist/ Director

Bec Turner

Practice Manager

Julianne Whiteley

Speech Pathologist

Barney

Therapy Dog

Alisa is a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist with a Masters in Speech Language Pathology from The University of Sydney. Originally trained as an actor, she obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Performance at Theatre Nepean at the University of Western Sydney where she developed her understanding of using the voice as a performance tool. Alisa joined Cate Madill Voice & Speech in 2013 and since then has had the privilege of helping both adults and children with their voice difficulties.

Alisa has a particular interest in voice disorders in both children and adults, including muscle tension dysphonia/ nodules, pre/post surgical voice treatment, workers compensation cases, return to work plans as well as working with performers and other professional voice users.

Alisa is an LSVT LOUD® certified clinician trained to deliver specialised voice therapy to clients with Parkinson disease and other neurological conditions. She has also undergone advanced training in Voicecraft techniques such as Sob Voice therapy and Yell Well, a program for children with nodules.

Alisa has worked in numerous settings including community health, hospitals and disability services. She is committed to working together with clients and their families to create specific programs that target each client’s individual needs. Alisa has been delivering voice therapy both in face to face settings and via telehealth (online consulting) for many years.

Alisa consults at our Westmead, St Leonards and Hornsby rooms.

Cate has worked as a voice trainer, Certified Practising Speech Pathologist, and voice therapist for the last 20 years. She is recognized nationally and internationally and has published in peer-reviewed academic journals.

She is regularly invited to speak to media, offering insight into wide-ranging topics, from the secrets of a great radio voice to the speech patterns of politicians. Read and listen to her media appearances here.

Dr. Madill originally trained as an actor at the Flinders University of South Australia during which time she discovered the work of Jo Estill and ‘Voicecraft™’, an approach to voice training that focuses on empowering the individual to maximize their voice through knowledge and skill. She pursued this approach over the next 10 years and is comprehensively trained in the use of the techniques.

Working as a voice coach in Sydney fuelled her interest in vocal function and disorder, leading to the completion of a Speech Pathology degree in 1998, with honours and the University medal for her research into describing vocal function.  She then worked in aged care rehabilitation services and in a voice practice for the next 5 years. She has worked as a part-time lecturer in Voice in both Speech Pathology and Acting degrees whilst completing her PhD in voice quality and personality attribution research.

Since taking up a University lecturing and research position, she has expanded her research in voice into investigating the supra-normal speaking voice, principles of motor learning in voice therapy and training, laryngeal biomechanics and optimizing vocal function in the treatment of professional voice users such as teachers, singers, actors barriers & public speakers. She has applied this knowledge to the treatment of voice clients in her private practice over the last 12 years.

Cate is an Honorary Associate of the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, a member of the Australian Voice Association, the NSW Voice Interest Group and the NSW Evidence-Based Practice in Voice working group. She is voice consultant to the radio department at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School and has conducted voice training workshops for actors, singers, teachers, call centres and auctioneers. She has undergone training in a range of voice techniques including Voicecraft™, Estill Voice Training™, Lessac Madsen Resonant Voice, LSVT.

Cate Madill is a former Board Member of the Australian Voice Association. She is also a member of the Australian Society for Performing Arts Healthcare (ASPAH), Laryngological Society of Australasia and Speech Pathology Australia, as well as an associate member of the Voice Foundation. Cate is also a member of the editorial board for the Journal of Voice, the International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Journal of Performing Arts Medicine

She is experienced in the diagnosis and treatment of voice disorders in voice professionals and training increased vocal effectiveness in those people who depend on vocal skill to inform, move, motivate and inspire.

Cate consults at our Westmead, St Leonards and Ultimo rooms.

Bec started her working life in the insurance industry with her father. She then moved to QBE Insurance, initially as an underwriter and subsequently as a User Acceptance Testing Manager for Y2K. Whilst having her children she moved into security administration with QBE until she left to be a full time mum with the birth of her third child. She spent many years raising her young family and in 2015 she re-joined the workforce in a small administrative role with Cate Madill Voice & Speech, really just to ‘help out with a bit of scanning’. Her role grew quickly as the business expanded and she now runs administration for both Cate Madill Voice & Speech in Sydney and Adelaide Voice and Speech Services. She finds herself very busy but fulfilled juggling her time between managing the clinics and raising 3 very beautiful children.

Julianne is a Certified Practising Speech Pathologist with a Masters in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Sydney. Julianne previously worked in the corporate sector both nationally and internationally in the areas of global logistics and HR. She first came into contact with the world of speech and language pathology when her first child was diagnosed with autism at 3 years of age and required support for his speech and language. Under the care of his speech and language pathologist, Julianne watched her 3-year-old son transform from a quiet, withdrawn and lonely child whom only she could understand, to a bubbly chatterbox with a circle of friends who could not wait to go to ‘big school’. Julianne joined a private practice of speech pathologists in Bondi Junction shortly afterwards where she worked for many years as a practice manager, before qualifying as a speech pathologist herself.

 Julianne supports pre-school, primary school and high school children with their speech, language and literacy. Her approach to therapy is family-centered and child-led. She strives to ensure that therapy is realistic and can be built into family lifestyles and routines to enable maximum effectiveness. Within the school environment, Julianne is an advocate of the Universal Design for Learning approach to education and works closely with teachers and learning support coordinators to create an inclusive environment where learners with varying backgrounds, abilities, and learning styles can thrive. Julianne is fluent in English and German and enjoys working with diverse cultures and languages.

Barney is our resident therapy dog and is in the Westmead rooms on a Friday. Barney is a 2.5year old labradoodle, an active member of the Leichhardt dog club and is training to be a Delta Dog Volunteer. He is very friendly and is hypo-allergenic and he does a great high five!


If you have an appointment with Cate and would like Barney to be in your session, please let us know.

  • 2012 - MSLP - The University of Sydney
  • 1994 - BA (Perf) - The University of Western Sydney
  • 2008 - PhD – The University of Sydney
  • 2008 - Graduate Certificate in Educational Studies - The University of Sydney
  • 1998 - BAppSc.(Speech Pathology)Hons (University Medal) -The University of Sydney
  • 1991 - BA (Hons) - Flinders University of SA
  • 2019 - MSLP – University of Sydney
  • 1998 - MPhil – Rhodes University South Africa
  • 1994 - BSocSci – Rhodes University South Africa

Payments & Rebates

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Payment is due at the time of consult either via MasterCard, Visa and cash or bank transfer by prior arrangement. All of our clinicians are registered Medicare Providers and therefore automatically approved with all Private Health funds.  Rebates may be available through the following ways:

Depending on your Private Health Insurance Fund and your level of cover, you may be entitled to rebates for Speech Pathology services. We will provide you with a receipt following each appointment, which you can take to your Private Health Insurance Fund to see if you are entitled to a rebate.

Speech Pathology is not automatically covered by Medicare. However you may be entitled to a rebate for some sessions, and your GP will advise if you are eligible or not. To claim the rebate from Medicare you will need an Enhanced Primary Care Plan (EPC) or Chronic Medical Condition Care Plan (CMC) referral from your GP. Please bring this paperwork to your appointment. The EPC/CMC entitles you to a maximum of 5 subsidised sessions per year. The current rebate will be processed once your account has been paid in  full. Please note that these referrals DO NOT mean the sessions are free. There will be out of pocket expenses. Please contact us on 1300 8VOICE (1300 886 423) for further information.

We are able to see NDIS clients who are either self-funded or plan managed. This means you can use funding from your ‘Improved Daily Living’ budget under your NDIS plan to see our Speech Pathologists at any of our clinics.  Please contact us for more information.

We are approved to provide services for insurance companies, including workers compensation claims, CTP claims and medico-legal cases. Provided you have written approval from the third party we can bill them directly for services.

In order to be able to offer our services to all people who require them we ask that if you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment, you give us a minimum of 2 working days (48 hours) notice. Fees will apply if less than 48 hours notice is given or for failure to attend a booked appointment without notice

Telehealth

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We have been offering speech therapy via telehealth for many years to clients who have not been able to come into our office. This option allows you to enjoy the benefits of having therapy conducted in your own space, either at home or at work. If at all possible it is preferable for voice clients to have their initial session conducted face to face and you can discuss moving to telehealth with your clinician during this first session.

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Locations

WE CONSULT IN 4 LOCATIONS ACROSS SYDNEY
  • Westmead
  • St Leonards
  • Ultimo
  • Hornsby
WE ALSO PROVIDE SERVICEs online via telehealth