Optimising Psychosocial Interventions for People With Severe and Enduring Eating Disorders (SEED) Perspectives of Healthcare Professionals in Ireland: A Qualitative Study.
Kate Mooney, Ann-Marie Bright, Annmarie Grealish
PMID 40195580WHAT IT FOUND
Healthcare professionals working with severe and enduring eating disorders said care should centre on trust, patient-chosen goals, quality of life, and trauma or autism needs.
They saw occupational therapy and social work input as meaningful, but this reports staff views, not patient outcomes.
Key findings
01HCPs said the therapeutic relationship was central: patients needed trust, empathy, and space to talk about their life, not only their eating disorder, weight, or unwanted change.
02HCPs favoured patient-centred goals focused on quality of life and living with SEED, with CFT-E, MANTRA, schema therapy, family therapy, and OT or social work meaningful activity, while CBT-E was seen as too demanding early.
03HCPs said trauma and autism are common in SEED but often overlooked, many felt undertrained to assess or manage them, and they wanted OT expertise for rigidity, thinking style, and sensory issues.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
This is a small qualitative study of healthcare professionals' views, not patients or families, so it cannot show what patients themselves experienced or what improves outcomes. Participants were from Ireland and were mainly mental health nurse specialists, clinical psychologists, dieticians, social workers, and one consultant psychiatrist; the findings may not transfer to other countries or all disciplines. Only one male participant was included, so male perspectives may be under-represented. The study did not test any intervention or measure patient recovery, physical safety, or treatment effects.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read these healthcare professional perspectives as evidence that patient-centred goals, CFT-E, MANTRA, schema therapy, family therapy, or occupational therapy and social work interventions improve eating disorder outcomes. The study interviewed staff only and did not measure patient recovery, physical safety, or treatment effects.