A novel approach to treating eating disorders in a day-hospital treatment program

摘要

Aim: The aim of the present study was to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of an adult day-hospital programthat uses a novel approach to delivering nutritional interventions.Methods: Fifty-six adult eating disorder patients of the Sydney West Area Eating Disorders Day Treatment Programparticipated in the study. Participants completed standardised self-reported questionnaires designed to measureeating disorder symptoms, at the commencement of treatment and after 12 weeks.Results: Participation in day-hospital treatment was associated with increases in weight, reductions in number ofbinge-eating and purging episodes, and frequency of exercise sessions. Participants also experienced improvementsin their eating attitudes, drive for thinness, bulimia, depression and anxiety symptoms.Conclusion: These findings add to the growing body of literature supporting the use of day-hospital programs inthe treatment of eating disorders. A number of strategies are suggested for the effective delivery of nutritionalinterventions in day-hospital programs, such as methods that assist with integrating new information, having anexperiential focus and the use of collaborative education processes.