25 May 2022

Dr Dasha Nicholls, an Honorary Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at CNWL, has helped in drawing up Medical Emergencies in Eating Disorders (MEED) Guidelines for the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

The guidance replaces the Management of Really Sick Patients with Anorexia Nervosa (MARSIPAN) and Junior MARSIPAN guidance.

The goal is to make preventable deaths from eating disorders a thing of the past and is aimed at any clinician likely to encounter patients with severe eating disorders.

It provides advice on assessing all eating disorders that can lead a patient into a state of clinical emergency, and how to manage their physical, nutritional and psychiatric care.  

There is also an eating disorders risk assessment tool that uses a ‘traffic light’ system and an accompanying set of summary sheets of tailored advice for the different target readers of the document. Recommendations are also given for commissioners on required services for this group of very ill patients.

Dr Nicolls, also a Clinical Reader in Child Psychiatry at Imperial College London, chaired their development.

She said: “We need to raise awareness of common eating disorders symptoms. Our guidance encourages healthcare professionals to spot when someone is dangerously ill, and dispel the myths surrounding them. They remain poorly understood with devastating consequences for thousands of patients and their families.”

To read the full guidance please click on this link to the Royal College: https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/improving-care/campaigning-for-better-mental-health-policy/college-reports/2022-college-reports/cr233