Receiving specialist care in a place that feels like home helps people with eating disorders apply their skills once they are ready to leave.
In brief:
Canberra’s brand-new Eating Disorders Residential Treatment Centre in Coombs is complete.Appointments will begin the week commencing 26 August 2024.The centre is Australia’s first publicly run 24/7 residential eating disorder centre.
The new Eating Disorders Residential Treatment Centre in Coombs is now complete.
It is Australia’s first publicly run 24/7 residential eating disorder centre. This is a brand-new service for the ACT region.
Appointments will begin the week commencing 26 August.
Residential treatments will begin in the coming weeks.
The importance of residential care
Receiving specialist care in a place that feels like home helps people apply their skills once they are ready to leave the service.
“We believe residential treatment, with 24/7 specialist eating disorder care in a home-like environment, is an essential option for successful recovery for many within the stepped system of care for eating disorders, and we’re excited to see more treatment options expanding across Australia for the more than 1.1 million Australians directly impacted each year,” Butterfly Foundation CEO Dr Jim Hungerford said.
Eating disorders can have significant impacts on the physical, psychological, and social-emotional wellbeing of all affected.
As such, the centre provides therapeutic services that include:
specialist treatmentintensive nutritional treatmentpsychological treatment.
Consulting with stakeholders
The centre’s completion is an important milestone for those with, or caring for someone with, an eating disorder.
The ACT Government worked with various stakeholders to finalise its design.
These include clinicians, non-government organisations, people with lived experience of eating disorders, families, carers and the wider Canberra community.
“Eating Disorders Families Australia (EDFA) looks forward to families and carers being active participants in the vital role of the Residential Treatment Facility and to continue providing our counselling, education and support services to the broader Canberra community,” ACT Director at EDFA David Quilty said.
National charity The Butterfly Foundation also shared insights. It runs the Wandi Nerida residential recovery centre for eating disorders in QLD.
The Australian Government has supported the establishment of the Coombs centre.
It will complement other eating disorder services in the region, including the Eating Disorders Clinical Hub and the early intervention service.
Getting help for eating disorders
If you, or anyone you know, is experiencing an eating disorder or body image concerns, contact the Butterfly Foundation National Helpline on 1800 33 4673 or find support services at Butterfly.
You can also refer yourself, or someone else to the Eating Disorders Clinical Hub for support and assessment.
The centre is located at Madgwick Street Coombs in the Molonglo Valley.
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