ACT Eating Disorders Residential Treatment Centre

Organisation / Service

ACT Government

The Centre is classified as a sub-acute inpatient health facility run by Canberra Health Services (CHS). The Centre operates 24 hour, 7 days a week. MHJHADS understand and respect that people choose to describe themselves in relation to mental health services and systems in a variety of ways such as participant, client, consumer or patient. All patients in the Centre are referred to as ‘participants’ in this model of care and whilst staying at the Centre, reflecting active participation in their recovery journey.

The Centre focuses on the psychological and physical recovery and improved psychosocial functioning of participants by providing specialist, intensive nutritional and psychological
treatment with medical monitoring and 24/7 nursing support for a period up to three months. This provides an opportunity for participants, carers, families, kin and supporters to envision
their recovery journey and relationship with food when they are back in their own homes.

This is a new service for the ACT and complements the other public eating disorder specific services in the Territory such as the Eating Disorders Program, the Early Intervention Service, the Clinical Hub, the STRIDE clinic and the Parenting/Carer Groups. The Centre sits within the stepped model of care and participants can transition between these services as required and as determined via the Clinical Hub. The Centre is expected to fill the critical gap between acute inpatient hospitalisation and outpatient programs to provide an opportunity for a more intensive psychological and therapeutic recovery model. 

National Strategy Standards and Actions

Treatment

Standard 1: People can access timely treatment and at the level of intensity they need, as close to home as possible (including digital options), and move between levels of treatment intensity in a seamless and supported way.

Action 1.1: Government and health and mental health service leaders to endorse eating disorders treatment as a core public health service accountability and workforce planning priority.

Action 1.2: National, state/territory, and regional planners to ensure adequate access to treatment services in every region (including rural and remote) and for each age group (children and adolescents, transition age groups (16-25), adults, and older adults).

Action 1.3: Treatment services within a local region (both public and private) to collaborate on service entry criteria to ensure a seamless system of care with coverage for all presentations.

Action 1.4: All treatment services to support people and their families/supports to transition between services and levels of treatment (step-up, step-down, and within level) through clear inter-service communication and tailored care navigation.

Standard 3: 

Action 3.2: Treatment services to establish shared treatment goals with the person and their family/supports, including consideration of the person’s broader psychosocial supports and needs, and any co-occurring conditions.

Standard 8: Treatment is affordable

Action 8.1: Government and health services to ensure that all public mental health services provide eating disorder services consistent with the needs of their regions.

Treatment (hospital and residential)

Standard 1: There is sufficient access to hospital beds and residential care to meet the medical and psychiatric needs of children and adolescents, transition age groups (16-25), adults, and older adults.

Action 1.1: State and territory governments to map the need for inpatient care for people across age groups and provide greater access to beds as required.

Standard 4: Regardless of setting of inpatient admission (e.g., medical ward), mental health support is provided appropriate to the goals of the admission.

Action 4.3: Hospital and residential services to ensure workforces are trained and supported to provide evidence-based acute/high-intensity care for people experiencing eating disorders.

Standard 5: People are supported to move between inpatient and community treatment services (both public and private) with supported pathways, service collaboration, and clear,
timely communication including discharge planning.

Action 5.1: Eating disorder-specific public and private inpatient settings to provide accessible information to the public about programs, criteria for admission and admission pathways.

Action 5.2: Inpatient services to provide clear communication to the person and family/supports about the goals and progress of admission, develop a detailed discharge plan with the person and their family/supports, and provide this plan to the person, their family/supports and the community treatment team.

5.3 Inpatient services to communicate with community treatment providers about the goals and progress of admission and provide a detailed discharge plan.