Independent Medical Examiner (IME)
A/Professor Sathya Rao, OAM, MBBS, MD, DPM, DipNB, FRANZCP
Executive Clinical Director of Spectrum, Personality disorder service for Victoria
Vice President, Australian Borderline Personality Disorder Foundation
Associate Professor Sathya Rao is the Executive Clinical Director of Spectrum, a statewide public mental health service specialising in personality disorder and complex trauma. He is also the Vice President of Australian Borderline Personality Disorder Foundation. He holds the appointment of Adjunct Associate Clinical Professor at Monash University. He belongs to the Faculty of Psychotherapies and Adult psychiatry, RANZCP
He has been an expert witness for Medico-Legal matters and has offered assistance in coronial investigations in Victoria and interstate. He has been an expert witness at the Magistrate court, Family and children’s court and Supreme Court of Victoria.
He offers expert clinical consultation and training across Australia for complex mental health clinical situations.
He is a psychiatrist and psychotherapist with training and backgrounds in psychological treatments such as Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Mentalization Based Therapy (MBT), Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and psychodynamic therapies.
He has been actively involved in teaching and training activities across Australia, for psychiatrists, GPs, and clinicians of allied health disciplines in the last 25 years.
He has in the past held the roles of deputy chief psychiatrist of Victoria, head of psychiatry training for Victoria, RANZCP. He has also held the roles of Director of Training, Director of Advanced Training (Psychotherapies and Adult Psychiatry) and an examiner of RANZCP.
He was a member of borderline personality disorder (BPD) guidelines development committee of National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC), Australia.
Dr Rao has been an invited speaker and has presented academic papers at national and international conferences. Dr Rao is involved in clinical research and has published more than 70 research papers, contributed chapters to books and has co-authored books on Personality Disorder.
In recognition of his outstanding service to Victorian Psychiatry over many years, the Victorian branch of the college of psychiatrists (RANZCP), in 2020 awarded him the ‘Meritorious Service Award’.
In recognition of his contributions to psychiatry he received the He received the award of the Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) (General Division) in June 2022.