Herefordshire Child and Adolescent Eating Disorder Service

Herefordshire's community eating disorder service is a specialist service within the CAMHS team that specifically treats eating disorders in children and young people between the ages of 8 to 17 and ½. The team are made up of specialist eating disorder mental health professionals who work across the county.

We offer treatment for young people which includes family therapy and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT). 

Treatments will start a maximum of 28 days after the referral has been accepted however, if your case is urgent treatments can start within 1 week. If the young person's physical state is life threatening due to their eating disorder behaviours they may be admitted to a paediatric ward by the paediatric team.

When someone is referred to us, we meet with them for an assessment to find out more about the problem and see if we can be of help. Sometimes our team might not be the best place for the individual; in that case we will refer on to a service that can best support them. If we can help, we will work with the person on a recovery programme.

What could treatment involve?

It can be difficult to accept that you have an eating disorder, and asking for help can be a confusing and daunting experience. You might feel scared, angry, ashamed, or guilty. We understand that this can be a very challenging time for you and those people who are closet to you but want to support you through it. Remember, eating disorders are complicated, and you might need a lot of support from professionals to get better. Recovery is possible.

We can help you to recover and the team will use different methods to help you through our recovery:

• Family based treatment: A whole-family approach is about treating the impact on the whole family and identifying how everyone can support the person with the eating disorder. This includes FTAN and FTBN as outlined in NICE guidance.
• Individual therapy: The staff at CAMHS offer different types of therapy depending on what will be best for you.
• Dietetic support: Individual meal plans will be established with our dietician.
• Medication: Though it is not a standard treatment for an eating disorder, medication may be considered for other additional concerns such as low mood.
• Medical monitoring: Eating disorders can be dangerous for the body and can cause medical complications so we monitor physical health and weight.
• A psychoeducation: This means increasing knowledge and understanding of the editing disorder with the young person, and exploring things such as body functioning, triggering factors and health risks. This is offered in a group format as well as individually.

Service details

Service hours:  9am - 5pm Monday to Friday (excludes bank holidays)
Location: Herefordshire, countywide
Management team: Rachel Fosten, Operational Service Manager