80,000 Scots eating disorder sufferers need more money, say NHS group
Report recommends better communication, in-patient and GP care
Mother of girl who died of anorexia sceptical about new guidelines
Story in full MORE money is needed if guidelines to improve the care of patients with
eating disorders in Scotland are to have any effect, one of the experts behind the new advice said yesterday.
A raft of recommendations for the treatment of people with anorexia and bulimia has been published by
NHS Quality Improvement Scotland.
But Dr Harry Millar, co-chair of the group that put the guidelines together, admitted that more resources were needed for their advice to lead to better care for patients.
The mother of a woman who died of anorexia after a struggle to access treatment was also sceptical about whether they would have any impact.
At least 80,000 people in Scotland are thought to suffer from an eating disorder.
Recommendations in the 50-page report from NHS QIS call for tailored care plans for individual patients.
The group wants better communication between those involved in dealing with people with eating disorders, and for GPs to look out for signs of a problem and refer patients to specialists such as psychologist when necessary.
But campaigners, while welcoming the guidelines, have pointed out that such services are "patchy".
Dr Millar, a consultant psychiatrist at the Grampian Eating Disorder Service, admitted more resources were needed.
"There is a difference between providing guidelines and providing services for patients," he said.
"There are some service developments going on, so it is not all bad news. But the area that is still to be addressed is what we do about in-patient provision for all these patients."
Dr Millar said there were no NHS in-patient beds for eating disorder patients and they had to be referred to private centres in Edinburgh and Glasgow. However, he said this was not convenient for patients from the north of the country.
"We think there is a case for developing provision further north," he said. "There is also a case for creating NHS services [to] provide more seamless care."
In June a report into the death of Lindsay Weddell, a 20-year-old anorexia sufferer from Currie, Edinburgh, said she had been failed by the system.
Miss Weddell, who had severe anorexia, died of an infection at St John's Hospital in Livingston.
She had been shunted between nine different treatment centres in Scotland and England over six years.
Yesterday her mother, Louise, said she had doubts the new guidelines would have any effect without major investment.
"It is OK to have these guidelines but you need the money to make them have any effect.
"I really think the Executive need to stop talking about it and do something quickly otherwise people are going to keep dying.
"Without the money and resources to back these guidelines up it is giving people false hope," Mrs Weddell said.
In July, The Scotsman revealed that anorexia sufferer Sally Cole-Hamilton had to travel to Canada to receive treatment.
The St Andrews University student was told by the NHS that she would need to lose more weight if she wanted in-patient care in Scotland.
Lewis Macdonald, the deputy health minister, said: "Improvements have already been made in eating disorders services across the country, but we know more needs to be done."
Shortage of specialists and centres to treat patients
WHEN Julie asked for help to beat anorexia, she was told she would face a nine-month wait to see a specialist in Aberdeen.
"I was in a really bad way at that stage and my doctor kept pushing for me to be seen because in nine months I would have probably been dead," the 32-year-old said.
Julie, who has suffered with anorexia for more than three years, was eventually seen at the Aberdeen clinic after five months. She then waited a further five months before being admitted to the private Priory Hospital in Glasgow, with her treatment funded by the NHS.
She is now back at the hospital for a second time and says her treatment is "fantastic".
But she said there were not enough places for other sufferers available in Scotland."There should be more services for people with eating disorders," Julie said.
"I had to go through a complete maze to get where I am now and it is pretty scary how few beds there are in Scotland."
Julie now weighs over seven stone after falling to just over six stone and says she is "fully committed" to getting better.
Dr Alex Yellowlees, medical director of the Priory Hospital in Glasgow and an eating disorder specialist, said NHS services had been under-resourced but he hoped the new guidelines would lead to greater investment.
"I think health boards will have to make changes to their service provision as there will be pressure brought to bear for them to act," he said.
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