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The Correct Eating Disorder Assessment

Eating disorders are one of the most troubling disorders to afflict mankind in recent times. These disorders have very serious implications and may even result in death in particular cases if the patient is left untreated. It is therefore, very important to recognize the problem before hand and do the needful to recover from it. Therefore, an eating disorder assessment is very important indeed. 

The moment it is suspected that a person has an eating disorder, the assessment of the situation is of prime importance. The assessment can be made on both, a professional as well as a personal level. Advances made through research on Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa have made the formulation of techniques and tools for the disorders possible. Standard assessments for binge eating are still under development as much less is known of the clinical features involved in this disorder than its other counterparts. 

A complete assessment should typically include three areas- behavior, psychology and medical implications. A good assessment will provide information on history of body weight and dieting, behavior related weight loss, body image perceptions and dissatisfactions, past psychological, vocational, family and social functioning and also past and present stress triggers. 

A friend or a family member can make a check list of the above points and try to gather as much information as possible on these points to enable a proper assessment. A professional would ideally take three things into consideration while performing an assessment. These include- physical correction of any existing medical condition, resolution of any underlying psychological, social or family problems and restoration of normal weight along with establishing healthy eating habits and exercise regimes. 

Professionals can use several methods of assessment on the patient to get the information they require. This includes, face to face interviews, detailed history questionnaires, inventories and testing mental measurements. 

For professionals, it is particularly important to maintain a good rapport with patients while obtaining all the above information to create a trusting and supportive environment. Therefore, getting less information during the first assessment is justified as long as the entire information can be obtained within a particular time. The patient has to feel that he will be helped and improved by the treatment. 

Therefore, eating disorder clinics go a long way in identifying the eating disorder and determining the treatment required for it. Assessment and treatment are supposed to go on simultaneously and are equally important parts of the recovery process. Once it has been assessed that the person does require help for eating disorders, it is important to provide treatment not only to the individual but also others who may be affected by it.