Recovered eating disorder therapists using their experiential knowledge in therapy: A qualitative examination of the therapists' and the patients' view

Treating eating disorders by professionals with similar experiences: A systematic review

OBJECTIVE

Although a significant number of professionals who provide eating disorder (ED) treatment have lived experience with an ED in the past, there is no consensus on whether these professionals should use these experiences in treatment. This review aims to evaluate current literature on recovered professionals with an ED past treating ED patients, unravelling advantages and disadvantages in treatment, the impact on professionals and their surroundings, and implications for practice.

METHOD

A systematic literature search was conducted which included 10 articles. We analysed qualitative data through a systematic synthesis. Strength of evidence was calculated for each subtheme.

RESULTS

Three themes and 14 subthemes were divided into categories. The category 'treatment (patient-professional interaction)' was divided into: advantages, disadvantages and other implications for treatment. Additionally, the category 'professionals themselves' included subthemes that directly impact or relate to ED professionals: recovery as a non-linear process, the significant role of self-care and adverse feelings of professionals. Finally, the category 'work settings' included: company culture and training, supervision and professional development.

DISCUSSION

Recovered ED professionals are a promising addition to ED treatment due to the enhanced expertise of the professional. However, attention should be paid to the risk of distorted boundaries between patient and professional.

A systematic review on the role of therapist characteristics in the treatment of eating disorders

Treating patients with eating disorders can be challenging for therapists, as it requires the establishment of a strong therapeutic relationship. According to the literature, therapist characteristics may influence intervention outcomes. The aim of this systematic review was to identify and synthesize existing literature on therapist interpersonal characteristics that could affect psychotherapy relationship or outcomes in the context of eating disorder treatment from both patients' and therapists' perspectives. We conducted a systematic search using electronic databases and included both qualitative and quantitative studies from 1980 until July 2023. Out of the 1230 studies screened, 38 papers met the inclusion criteria and were included in the systematic review. The results indicate that patients reported therapist's warmth, empathic understanding, a supportive attitude, expertise in eating disorders, and self-disclosure as positive characteristics. Conversely, a lack of empathy, a judgmental attitude, and insufficient expertise were reported as therapist negative characteristics, which could have a detrimental impact on treatment outcome. Few studies have reported therapist's perceptions of their own personal characteristics which could have an impact on treatment. Therapists reported that empathy and supportiveness, optimism, and previous eating disorder experience were positive characteristics. Conversely, clinician anxiety, a judgmental attitude, and a lack of objectivity were reported as negative characteristics that therapists felt could hinder treatment. This systematic review offers initial evidence on the personal characteristics of therapists that may affect the treatment process and outcomes when working with patients with eating disorders.

Family-centered service through the eyes of insiders: Healthcare providers who are parents speak about receiving and providing healthcare in child health

BACKGROUND

When healthcare providers (HCPs) become patients, the experience affects their sense of identity, the care they receive, and their clinical practice. In child health, considerably less is known about the experiences of HCP-parents who access the pediatric healthcare system with their own children with disabilities and/or chronic medical conditions.

AIMS

This study aimed to examine the experiences of HCPs who have children with disabilities to identify their experiences with healthcare delivery.

METHODS AND PROCEDURES

A qualitative descriptive study was conducted with HCP-parents, using focus groups and open-ended interviews. Data were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis.

RESULTS

For HCP-parents, the experience of having a child with a disability affects how they see themselves, their patients, service organizations, and the healthcare system in general. Having medical knowledge and access to networks brings both benefits and unique challenges. HCP-parents also have unique needs that are not currently being addressed. The lived experiences of HCP-parents can contribute to improving patient care. However, the value of this lived experience is unrecognized and underutilized.

CONCLUSIONS

The lived experiences of HCP-parents can contribute important insights regarding service delivery, and in particular regarding the application of Family-Centered Service.

Self-disclosure by adolescents in therapy for eating difficulties: A Q-Methodology study

Facilitating client self-disclosure is essential to therapeutic effectiveness. Given the long-term consequences of eating difficulties for adolescents, there is a need for more research on self-disclosure in this group. This study investigated factors likely to influence adolescents' decisions to self-disclose during psychological therapy for eating difficulties using Q-methodology. Participants (n = 28), recruited through child and adolescent mental health services in the UK, completed a task that involved sorting 47 statements to represent their viewpoint on self-disclosure. The 28 completed sorts were subjected to a by-participant factor analysis in order to identify distinct viewpoints in the sample. Three distinct factors were extracted. One factor emphasised the importance of therapist self-disclosure on decisions to disclose. In contrast, another factor placed more emphasis on the influence of eating disorder identity and readiness to change on disclosure decisions. The third factor placed emphasis on the quality of the therapeutic relationship and readiness to change as having most influence. Given the absence of a unifying factor representing what influences the decision to disclose, clinicians should ensure they explore with young people what might influence their decision to disclose.

Understanding drift in the treatment of eating disorders using a mixed-methods approach

Despite strong empirical support for treatments of eating disorders, research has demonstrated a trend of clinicians deviating from protocols outlined in empirically supported manuals. The present study used a convergent mixed-methods design to understand clinicians' use of and drift from empirically supported treatments in a sample of 114 licensed clinicians in the US who had substantial experience (i.e. one-third of caseload) working with patients with eating disorders and training in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), family-based therapy (FBT), and/or interpersonal therapy (IPT) for eating disorders. Results revealed that 63.7-76.3% of clinicians drift from empirically supported treatments and 71.8% were aware they deviated from empirically supported treatments. Qualitative analyses identified client differences (57.2%) to be the primary reason why clinicians drift, with less participants describing therapist factors (20.4%), treatment shortcomings (12.6%), treatment setting (11.7%), logistic constraints (4.9%) and family factors (4.9%) as reasons why they drift. These findings suggest that drift for most clinicians may be better explained under the umbrella of evidence-based practice. Clinicians also identified a number of ways in which treatment and access to treatment can be improved. This broadened understanding of the use of empirically supported treatments within evidence-based practice may serve to help bridge the gap between research and practice.

Co-producing principles to guide health research: an illustrative case study from an eating disorder research clinic

BACKGROUND

There is significant value in co-produced health research, however power-imbalances within research teams can pose a barrier to people with lived experience of an illness determining the direction of research in that area. This is especially true in eating disorder research, where the inclusion of co-production approaches lags other research areas. Appealing to principles or values can serve to ground collaborative working. Despite this, there has not been any prior attempt to co-produce principles to guide the work of a research group and serve as a basis for developing future projects.

METHODS

The aim of this piece of work was to co-produce a set of principles to guide the conduct of research within our lived experience led research clinic, and to offer an illustrative case for the value of this as a novel co-production methodology. A lived experience panel were recruited to our eating disorder research group. Through an iterative series of workshops with the members of our research clinic (composed of a lived experience panel, clinicians, and researchers) we developed a set of principles which we agreed were important in ensuring both the direction of our research, and the way in which we wanted to work together.

RESULTS

Six key principles were developed using this process. They were that research should aim to be: 1) real world-offering a clear and concrete benefit to people with eating disorders, 2) tailored-suitable for marginalised groups and people with atypical diagnoses, 3) hopeful-ensuring that hope for recovery was centred in treatment, 4) experiential-privileging the 'voice' of people with eating disorders, 5) broad-encompassing non-standard therapeutic treatments and 6) democratic-co-produced by people with lived experience of eating disorders.

CONCLUSIONS

We reflect on some of the positives as well as limitations of the process, highlighting the importance of adequate funding for longer-term co-production approaches to be taken, and issues around ensuring representation of minority groups. We hope that other health research groups will see the value in co-producing principles to guide research in their own fields, and will adapt, develop, and refine this novel methodology.

A roadmap for applying machine learning when working with privacy-sensitive data: predicting non-response to treatment for eating disorders

OBJECTIVES

Applying machine-learning methodology to clinical data could present a promising avenue for predicting outcomes in patients receiving treatment for psychiatric disorders. However, preserving privacy when working with patient data remains a critical concern.

METHODS

In showcasing how machine-learning can be used to build a clinically relevant prediction model on clinical data, we apply two commonly used machine-learning algorithms (Random Forest and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator) to routine outcome monitoring data collected from 593 patients with eating disorders to predict absence of reliable improvement 12 months after entering outpatient treatment.

RESULTS

An RF model trained on data collected at baseline and after three months made 31.3% fewer errors in predicting lack of reliable improvement at 12 months, in comparison with chance. Adding data from a six-month follow-up resulted in only marginal improvements to accuracy.

CONCLUSION

We were able to build and validate a model that could aid clinicians and researchers in more accurately predicting treatment response in patients with EDs. We also demonstrated how this could be done without compromising privacy. ML presents a promising approach to developing accurate prediction models for psychiatric disorders such as ED.

Attitudes towards eating disorders clinicians with personal experience of an eating disorder

PURPOSE

This study explores the perspectives and opinions towards ED clinicians with lived experience of ED.

METHODS

Three hundred and eighty-five ED clinicians and 124 non-clinicians from 13 countries, between 18 and 76 years of age completed an online survey about attitudes towards ED clinicians with a personal ED history. Almost half the respondents (n = 242, 47.5%) reported a lifetime ED diagnosis. Survey items included ten multiple-choice and three open questions about clinician disclosure, employer hiring practices, and perceived advantages and disadvantages of clinicians with a personal ED history practicing in the ED field. Multiple-choice responses from clinicians with and without a personal ED history were compared with responses from non-clinicians with and without a personal ED history. Open questions were examined using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Clinicians with no ED history, whose responses often differed from both ED-history groups (clinicians and non-clinicians), were more likely to indicate that clinicians with an ED should not generally treat ED patients, and that clinicians should self-disclose their ED history to employers but not to their patients. Thematic analysis of the open-ended questions revealed that advantages of having clinicians with an ED history include a deep experiential understanding and the ability to be empathic and non-judgmental, whereas disadvantages include the lack of objectivity and the risk of clinicians being triggered.

CONCLUSION

Further research informing guidelines for ED clinicians with a personal ED history, their colleagues and employers are needed to protect and empower the significant minority of ED professionals with "lived experience" of EDs.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III, case-control analytic study.

Disclosing mental illness: a doctor's dilemma

SUMMARY

There is increasing evidence that doctors have high levels of mental illness, and there are concerns that, for some, this may be exacerbated by their working environment. It can be difficult for doctors to disclose mental illness, either to senior or junior colleagues, and perhaps even harder to know what, if anything, to say to patients. Many doctors may be unsure of their position as regards disclosing to governing bodies; others may disclose widely on social media. I am a psychiatrist who also has a significant mental illness, and refer both to my personal experience and the literature to explore some of these issues.

Factors Affecting Mental Health Professionals' Sharing of Their Lived Experience in the Workplace: A Scoping Review

OBJECTIVE

Research has suggested that some mental health professionals (MHPs) continue to hold stigmatized beliefs about persons with emotional distress. These beliefs may be amenable to contact-based interventions with similar peers. To inform future interventions, policy, and research, this scoping review examined existing literature to identify factors that affect disclosure of lived experience by MHPs to colleagues and supervisors.

METHODS

A systematic search was conducted of four online databases, gray literature, and the reference lists of included articles. Primary research studies of any design conducted with MHPs with lived experience of emotional distress and their colleagues were included. The findings of included studies were inductively coded within the themes of enabling, constraining, and intrapersonal factors influencing disclosure.

RESULTS

A total of 23 studies were included in data extraction and synthesis. Factors that influenced MHPs' sharing of their lived experience in the workplace were categorized into five overarching themes: the "impaired professional," the "us and them" divide, the "wounded healer," belief in the continuum of emotional distress, and negotiating hybrid identities. MHPs with lived experience described feeling conflict between professional and service user identities that affected the integration and use of their clinical and experiential knowledge. Enabling factors reflected best-practice human resource management, such as organizational leadership, access to supervision and training, inclusive recruitment practices, and the provision of reasonable accommodations.

CONCLUSIONS

Findings of this scoping review suggest that organizational interventions to support MHPs in order to share their lived experience may improve workplace diversity and well-being, with implications for service users' experience.

Eating disorders "mental health literacy": a scoping review

Background: While it is apparent that much has been learned about "mental health literacy" (MHL) relating to certain mental health problems, such as depression, in recent years, what has been learned about MHL relating to eating disorders (ED-MHL) is unclear.Aims: A scoping review was conducted to inform the current state of knowledge in this field.Methods: A systematic search of relevant literature published between 1997 and 2017 was followed by a narrative synthesis of the findings.Results: The number of eligible studies increased from 32 in 1997-2001 to 98 in 2012-2017 (total = 264). Most studies originated from North America or Europe, recruited individuals with EDs receiving treatment or college students and included both female and male or only female participants. The majority of studies examined MHL relating to anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa and examined attitudes which facilitate recognition and appropriate help-seeking and knowledge and beliefs about professional help available.Conclusion: Interest in ED-MHL is increasing and there is now a considerable body of research addressing some aspects of ED-MHL in a range of study populations. Notable gaps in the literature exist, including a paucity of information about ED-MHL relating to EDs other than anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, ED behaviour in males and the use of self-help interventions. We hope the findings will provide an incentive to further research in these and other aspects of ED-MHL.

Disclosure in therapy by clients with eating difficulties: a Q-Methodology study

Disclosure by those with eating difficulties is of considerable importance to clinicians and researchers. The aim of the present study was to explore variability in factors considered likely to influence the decision to disclose during psychological therapy by people who experience such difficulties. Thirty-seven participants recruited through a UK-based eating disorder charity completed a Q-sort task. This invited them to sort 47 statements onto a grid reflecting what would make them more or less likely to disclose in therapy. The thirty-seven Q-sorts were analysed using PQ method software. This resulted in the extraction of three factors explaining 41 percent of the variance. Participants loading on the first factor considered maintaining an eating disorder identity as most influential whilst participants loading on the second factor considered the therapeutic relationship as most influential. Those loading on the third factor considered personal readiness and feelings of security as most influential. This study suggests that clinicians need to assess influences on the decision to disclose for individual clients and to modify the early stages of intervention accordingly. Future research could assess the utility of using the Q-sort process and materials in this study as a way to elicit influences on disclosure decisions.

Having an Eating Disorder and Still Being Able to Flourish? Examination of Pathological Symptoms and Well-Being as Two Continua of Mental Health in a Clinical Sample

Introduction: Eating Disorders (EDs) are serious psychiatric disorders, impacting physical and psychosocial functioning, often with a chronic course and high mortality rates. The two continua model of mental health states that mental health is a complete state, that is, not merely the absence of mental illness, but also the presence of mental health. This model was studied among ED patients by examining the presence and correlates of well-being and psychopathology. In addition, the levels of well-being were compared to the Dutch general population. Method: A total of 468 female ED patients participated in this study during application and intake at a specialized ED treatment Center in the Netherlands. They filled out questionnaires about well-being (MHC-SF), general psychopathology (OQ-45), and ED psychopathology (EDE-Q). Categorical andmean well-being levels were calculated. Also, the relationships between these variables were examined with Pearson correlation and multiple hierarchical regression analysis. Results: ED patients showed lower levels of emotional, psychological, and social well-being on average compared to the general population. About 26% of the ED patients experienced low levels of well-being (languishing). However, also 13% experienced high levels of well-being (flourishing), varying between 9% in Anorexia Nervosa to 25% in Binge Eating Disorder. ED psychopathology and general well-being showed a moderate negative correlation. For patients with Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder however no such correlation was found. Lower general psychopathology, not having a history of hospitalization for the ED, and adaptive personal functioning were correlated with well-being among ED patients. Conclusion: This study shows initial support for the two continua model of mental health among ED patients. Psychopathology and well-being should be considered as related, but distinct dimensions of mental health in ED patients. Further research should focus on the possible reciprocal relationships between psychopathology and well-being during recovery. It is recommended to monitor well-being during treatment and to implement interventions for well-being to realize complete recovery for those patients with inadequate levels of well-being.

Are recovery stories helpful for women with eating disorders? A pilot study and commentary on future research

BACKGROUND

Anecdotally it is well known that eating disorder memoirs are popular with people with anorexia nervosa and recovery stories are readily available online. However, no research to date has empirically explored whether such stories are helpful for current sufferers. The aim of the current pilot study was to explore the efficacy of recovery narratives as a means of improving motivation and self-efficacy and to qualitatively explore patient perspectives of such stories.

METHOD

Fifty-seven women with anorexia nervosa and subclinical anorexia nervosa participated in this online study. Participants were randomised to either receive recovery stories or to a wait-list control group. After completing baseline measures, participants read five stories about recovery, and completed post-intervention measures two weeks later.

RESULTS

The quantitative results indicated that reading stories of recovery had no effect on motivation and self-efficacy over a two-week period. In contrast, the qualitative results showed that the stories generated thoughts about the possibility of recovery and the majority indicated they would recommend them to others.

CONCLUSIONS

This study adds to a growing body of research exploring the integration of voices of lived experience into treatment approaches. Future research should focus on 1) identifying for whom and at which stage of illness recovery stories might be helpful; 2) the mechanism via which they might operate; and 3) the most helpful way of presenting such stories.

Orthorexia Nervosa and Eating Disorder Symptoms in Registered Dietitian Nutritionists in the United States

BACKGROUND

Registered dietitian nutritionists are trained to identify optimal food choices for clients based on medical state and lifestyle. Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is a proposed disorder related to obsessions about eating healthfully. Eating disorders (EDs) are serious mental illnesses with symptoms related to eating, body image, and self-esteem. Both ON and EDs are more common among RDNs than the general population.

OBJECTIVE

This study examined the prevalence of ON and EDs in RDNs in the United States and, among this sample, assessed whether the presence of ON symptoms related to symptoms of EDs, including weight, shape, eating, and restraint.

DESIGN

A cross-sectional design compared responses for participants after dividing into three groups: those scoring at-risk for ON, those with a current or past ED, and a comparison group.

PARTICIPANTS

A sample of 2,500 RDNs were invited to complete surveys electronically; 636 responses were received.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Scores on the Orthorexia Nervosa Questionnaire (ORTO-15) and Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) determined prevalence of ON and EDs. Differences in these measures, and body mass index were compared among the three groups.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES

Analysis of variance and χ² analyses were used to compare the groups.

RESULTS

For the entire sample, scores on the ORTO-15 suggested 49.5% were at risk for ON, and scores on the EDE-Q suggested 12.9% were at risk for an ED, with 8.2% of RDNs self-disclosing treatment for an ED. Both the group disclosing ED treatment and the group at risk for ON had a lower mean body mass index, lower scores on the ORTO-15, and higher scores on the EDE-Q and all its subscales than the comparison group.

CONCLUSIONS

Clarifying the relationship between ON and EDs is warranted because ON symptoms appear to be associated not only with disturbances in eating, but also with elevated shape and weight concerns.