About Saniya 

Saniya is a Clinical Psychologist and has obtained her PhD (Clinical Psychology) at the University of Wollongong, which includes the Masters (Clinical Psychology). Saniya has a special interest in helping older adolescents (15 years+) and young adults experiencing comorbid difficulties with disordered eating, anxiety disorders, low mood, difficulties with identity, relationships, substance use, anger and self-harm.

Approach

Saniya has a relational and psychodynamic focus in her work. She endeavours to create a warm and honest space for her clients, to help them explore their internal world and behavioural patterns, while also keeping in mind the client's cultural context. Initial consults (2-3 sessions) involve a thorough assessment to individualise treatment plan according to the specific needs of clients. Saniya has training in and feels comfortable using the following therapies in her work:                                                 
  • Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) 
  • Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT)
  • Eye-Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR)
  • Schema Therapy 
  • Supportive psychodynamic therapy 
  • Transference Focussed Psychodynamic Therapy (TFP) for Borderline Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

Experience

Saniya is a clinician-researcher, with broad interests in the application of psychological theories and principles. She holds a position as a Research Fellow at the Kids Cancer Centre (Randwick - Sydney) and University of New South Wales (UNSW). She is part of the Precision Medicine and Genomics team within the Behavioural Sciences Unit (BSU) looking at the psychosocial impact of cancer diagnosis and treatment on children and their families. She is working on projects looking at how families with a child with cancer make decisions regarding precision-guided treatment recommendations. Previously, her PhD research examined the role of ‘tolerance of uncertainty’ on decisions regarding  inappropriate initiation of antibiotics in aged care with nurses. She has also been involved in research projects investigating substance use and help-seeking; non-response to treatment in BPD and  parent-child interaction therapy. Saniya is a board-endorsed supervisor and consults across the health, education, forensic and legal settings in providing debriefing/supervision to clinicians, case workers and practitioners in the management of complex clients and clinical debriefing to individuals exposed to trauma within their workplace. Saniya has worked across the lifespan (children - older adults, aged 65+) in psychiatry & psycho-oncology (hospital), eating disorders, family violence and sexual assault & substance use services over the last 7 years. She has experience running groups for substance use, anxiety and depression both, inpatient/outpatient settings. Previously, she has also taught clinical units within the Psychology (Honours) and undergraduate programs at the University of Wollongong.

Conferences & Presentations

  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Drury, P., Montgomery, A., Caputi, P., & Deane, F. P. (2024). Nurses’ anxiety as a
mediator for the relationship between clinical tolerance to uncertainty and antibiotic initiation in residential
aged-care facilities. BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine 2023; 28: A51-A52.
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Raftery, D., Drury, P., Montgomery, A., Caputi, P., & Deane, F. P (2024). How do8
Clinicians in Aged-Care Manage Uncertainty? Using a Framework of ‘Uncertainty Tolerance’ to Inform
Antibiotic Stewardship. Society for Medical Decision-Making, 46th Annual Meeting, 2024.
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Deane, F., Montgomery, A., Drury, P., & Caputi, P. (2023). What influences antibiotic initiation? Developing a scale to measure nursing behaviour in residential aged-care facilities. Preventing Overdiagnosis Meeting Abstracts. https://doi.org/10.1136/ebm-2023-pod.106
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Deane, F., Montgomery, A., Drury, P., & Caputi, P. (2024). Managing Uncertainty re Antibiotics: Speaking to Nurses in Aged-Care. Wiser Healthcare National Meeting, University of Sydney.
  • Bird, A., Underwood, L., Reese, E., Duursma, E., Singh, S., & Morton, S. M. B. Fathers’ perceptions of their parenting roles: Evidence from a large, contemporary, population-based cohort. Poster submitted for Society for Research in Child Development (SRCD) Biennual Conference 2019 Baltimore, US.

Publications

  • Singh S, Degeling C, Drury P, Montgomery A, Caputi P, Deane FP. Nurses’ Anxiety Mediates the Relationship between Clinical Tolerance to Uncertainty and Antibiotic Initiation Decisions in Residential Aged-Care Facilities. Medical Decision Making. 2024. doi:10.1177/0272989X241239871
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Drury, P., Montgomery, A., Caputi, P., & Deane, F. P. (2024). What influences antibiotic initiation? developing a scale to measure nursing behaviour in residential aged‐care facilities. Nursing Open, 11(5). https://doi.org/10.1002/nop2.2184
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Fernandez, D. et al. How do aged-care staff feel about antimicrobial stewardship? A systematic review of staff attitudes in long-term residential aged-care. Antimicrob Resist Infect Control 11, 92 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13756-022-01128-5.
  • Singh, S., Degeling, C., Raftery, D., Drury, P., Montgomery, A., Caputi, P., & Deane, F. P. (2024). How Do Clinicians Manage Uncertainty in Making Decisions? Applying Theory to Nurses’ Experiences of Uncertainty Regarding Antibiotics in Residential Aged-Care Facilities. [under review].
  • Degeling C, Hall J, Montgomery A, Singh S, Mullan J, Williams J. (2023) The Dilemmas of Antimicrobial Stewardship in Aged Care: The Perspectives of the Family Members of Older Australians. Geriatric Nursing. (In press).
  • Fernandez, D.K., Singh, S., Deane, F.P. et al. Exploring Continuum and Categorical Conceptualisations of Mental Health and Mental Illness on Australian Websites: A Systematic Review and Content Analysis. Community Ment Health J (2022). https://doi.org/10.
  • Hall J, Hawkins O, Montgomery A, Singh S, Mullan J, Degeling C. Dismantling antibiotic infrastructures in residential aged care: The invisible work of antimicrobial stewardship (AMS). Soc Sci Med. 2022 Jul; 305:115094. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.115094. Epub 2022 May 31. PMID: 35690033.
  • Woodbridge J, Townsend M, Reis S, Singh S, Grenyer BF. Non-response to psychotherapy for borderline personality disorder: A systematic review. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 2022 Jul;56(7):771-787. doi: 10.1177/00048674211046893. Epub 2021 Sep 15. PMID: 34525867; PMCID: PMC9218414.

Research Affiliations:

  • Behavioural Sciences Unit (BSU)

    Kids Cancer Centre & University of New South Wales (Randwick - SYDNEY)

    Website

  • Australian Centre for Health Engagement, Evidence and Values

    University of Wollongong

    Website

  • Wiser Healthcare Collaborative

    Wiser Healthcare is a research collaboration involving The University of Sydney, Bond University, Monash University, University of Wollongong, University of Melbourne and international colleagues.

    Website