Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Eating Disorders Team

Service description

The Child and Adolescent Eating Disorder Service is a team of professionals who have specialist training and experience in working with children and young people with a range of eating disorders. The team consists of a range of professionals including psychiatry, psychology, family therapy, psychotherapy and mental health nursing. We liaise closely with colleagues in dietetics and paediatrics. We also offer training placements to professionals who are closely supervised by team members.

Our aim is to provide assessment and treatment at the earliest opportunity to children, young people and their families. We know from research that the quicker children and young people receive treatment, the better the outcome is likely to be for them.

Assessment and treatment aim to focus on both the physical and psychological aspects of eating difficulties. Therefore all children and young people will receive medical monitoring to help their physical recovery, whilst also receiving therapeutic input to assist their psychological recovery.

What kind of help do we offer?

• Family based therapies – this involves the family coming together to work towards recovery.
• Individual therapies – this is normally 1:1 work to address areas of difficulty.
• Physical monitoring – can include checking weight, blood pressure and pulse.

Once we have received a referral (usually from your GP), we will offer an appointment to assess whether our service is the best place for the child or young person to be treated. This assessment takes place at our Mawson House base on Valence Road in Leicester, and will take at least two hours but sometimes longer.

If, following assessment, the team and family agree to begin treatment, options will be discussed with the child or young person and their family and a plan agreed. At this point you will be allocated a lead professional who will be involved in the treatment you receive and oversee any other additional treatment needs. If, after the assessment, it is felt that this is not the most appropriate service, this will be discussed with you then. We will also write to the referrer and explain the reasons for this and consider alternatives. You will receive a copy of all correspondence.

This short video gives you an overview of what to expect when you visit our service.

Referral criteria

Young patients with eating disorders (primarily anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa) up until the age of 18.