About Dr Laura Pejnovic

MBBS BMedSci DCH MPsychiatry FRANZCP Cert Child Adol Psych

Child & Adolescent Psychiatrist

I am a Psychiatrist with expertise in Child and Adolescent mental health. I completed my training at Monash Health following graduation from The University of Melbourne in 2013. I hold a Masters of Psychiatry from The University of Melbourne and am a Fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists and the Victorian Faculty of Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists.

Over the past decade, I have worked extensively in both inpatient and community public mental health settings, including the Monash Health Oasis Statewide Neurodevelopmental Unit for neurodiverse children experiencing significant emotional distress. In 2020, I was appointed the Chief Registrar of the Mental Health Program at Monash Health. As part of this role, I was responsible for assisting support the wellbeing of 100 junior medical staff during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In private practice, I provide care for infants through to young adults, and families including people planning pregnancy, experiencing challenges becoming pregnant, or those in the perinatal period.  

My areas of interest are:

• Anxiety

• Depression

• Trauma

• Grief

• The development of a person’s sense of self

I have specialist training in psychotherapy, family therapy, parent-child psychotherapy, and medication management where necessary.

My strengths include collaborative and empathetic person-centred care with a focus on psychotherapy. I am passionate about developing an enduring trusting therapeutic relationship with people experiencing emotional distress. It is important to me that patients feel safe within the therapeutic space and well understood. I hope to provide holistic care that meets people where they are at and supports their emotional needs. My focus is understanding a person in the context of their family and their broader world. As such, working with a patient, their loved ones, and their health providers during their recovery journey is prioritised.

Given my scope within private practice at this time, I am unable to take on new referrals for people who are experiencing acute mental health crises or serious mental health challenges such as a primary eating disorder, psychosis, or mania.