Cribben, Hannah;
Batchelor, Rachel;
Macdonald, Pamela;
Treasure, Janet;
Cini, Erica;
Nicholls, Dasha;
Kan, Carol;
(2025)
Experiences of eating disorder services for people caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK: national survey.
BJPsych Open
, 11
(1)
, Article e17. 10.1192/bjo.2024.812.
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Abstract
Background: Research suggests that those caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK report unmet needs and highlight areas for improvement. More research is needed to understand these experiences on a wider, national scale. Aims: To disseminate a national survey for adults who had experience caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK, informed by the findings of a smaller scale, qualitative study with parents, siblings and partners in the UK. Method: A cross-sectional web-based survey was disseminated to adults who had experience caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK. Results: A total of 360 participants completed the survey. Participants described experiences of care received in both children and young people's, and adult services. Those receiving care from children and young people's services generally reported more timely care, greater involvement in care and more confidence managing their loved one's symptoms post-discharge. In both settings, participants identified a number of areas for improvement, including more timely access to care, improved transition processes and discharge planning, and increased involvement in their loved one's care. Conclusions: This survey captures the experiences of individuals caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK. There are identified discrepancies between experiences of care in children and young people services compared with adult services. Clinical implications and recommendations for improvement are discussed, including improved transition and discharge processes, increased involvement of and/or support for carers themselves, and more timely access to support services for the unwell individual.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Experiences of eating disorder services for people caring for a loved one with an eating disorder in the UK: national survey |
| Location: | England |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1192/bjo.2024.812 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1192/bjo.2024.812 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Royal College of Psychiatrists.This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited. |
| Keywords: | Feeding or eating disorders, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, carers, patients |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine > Experimental and Translational Medicine |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10207751 |
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