FOREWORD I was honoured when Belinda Chelius, CEO of Eating Disorders Queensland (EDQ) asked me to provide this foreword. I have had the benefit and privilege of working with and alongside EDQ for almost twenty years. During that time, I have observed many changes in name, venue, programmes, leadership and staffing. But there are some things that, thankfully, have remained the same. These include a dedication to social justice and community engagement, a systemic and feminist perspective, a trauma informed approach, and a nonjudgmental, safe, personcentred approach to helping those struggling with eating issues. I have learnt much from EDQ over the years. I have watched a peer workforce grow and flourish. I have seen the benefits of a welcoming, safe, nonthreatening community environment for those suffering from eating disorders. And I have seen a wonderful variety of community-based actions to address the toxic social and cultural factors that cause and perpetuate eating disorders and stigma around weight and shape. Many times, I have stood alongside people with lived experience, supported by EDQ, as they helped me deliver training to doctors and other clinicians. As these clinicians hear about the lived experience of those with eating, I often see, within minutes, years of misunderstanding and stigma dissolve before my eyes. Thanks to EDQ, I have seen carers helping carers, survivors helping those in recovery, and authentic, highly-skilled and sensitive clinicians from EDQ opening the minds and hearts of other clinicians. I look forward to a long, continuing relationship with EDQ, and I highly recommend these thoughtful, comprehensive, contemporary, and beautifully person-centred guidelines to you. A/Prof Warren Ward MBBS FRANZCP FAED Director, Queensland Eating Disorders Service (QuEDS)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The staff at Eating Disorders Queensland (EDQ) devoted a great deal of their time and energy to generating the content for these guidelines. They participated in multiple workshops, recommended research and literature, read copious drafts and were always available to answer my many questions. Working with such an inspiring group of dedicated practitioners has been the highlight of this project for me. Thank you all for your commitment to ensuring these guidelines are a true reflection of the high-quality work you do at EDQ. Thank you to the CEO of EDQ, Belinda Chelius, who had the vision to initiate these guidelines. Belinda has gently guided the process and has provided me with constant support throughout the project. Thank you to the EDQ Board who supported this idea and made the project possible. A special thanks to the senior workers Christophe, Melissa, Emma and Rohie for their extra assistance with editing the drafts of this document. Thank you to several other people who were involved in the production of this document: Kristen Young for undertaking the initial literature review; Sandra Hogan for her work in editing the final document; Lisa Kelly for her beautiful art work and illustrations; dtb! Advertising for the design and formatting of the final document.
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I would also like to thank the Blue Knot Foundation for their internationally acclaimed Practice Guidelines for Clinical Treatment of Complex Trauma. These guidelines have provided much needed information on trauma informed practice, and we have drawn guidance and inspiration from them in the creation of these guidelines.And finally, I would like to acknowledge the many clients and carers / key supports and loved ones who have accessed the service since its inception in 1996. These guidelines are the culmination of our learning over these years, and it is our hope that they will make it more possible for other workers and organisations to embrace this approach to working with people with eating disorders.
We would like to respectfully acknowledge the Traditional Owners of the land on which Eating Disorders Queensland operate, and their Elders past, present and emerging. We honour the women elders in diverse communities of which we are a part and we celebrate the extraordinary diversity of women’s bodies, genders, sexualities, capacities and relationships that we all represent. We pay our respects to all the people with a lived experience, carers / key supports and loved ones who have shared their recovery wisdom with us.
Clinical Guidelines
