A Call for Strategy on Eating Disorders: The Need for a Comprehensive Eating Disorder Strategy in England and Specific Guidance for the Remote Delivery of Eating Disorder Services

There are growing calls for a comprehensive, evidence-based national eating disorder strategy. This is due to the rising prevalence of eating disorders (EDs) in England, the lack of national guidance in relation to different ED presentations (and potentially varying treatment needs), ad hoc data collection, and inconsistencies in both care and evaluation of quality-of-service provision. Furthermore, the shift towards the remote delivery of care during the COVID-19 pandemic underscores the need for government strategy to include specific guidance on remote delivery of ED services. The increased use of remote healthcare presents an opportunity to mitigate regional disparities in the provision of care. However, there are distinct challenges when delivering ED services remotely. In this position paper, we firstly highlight the growing need for a comprehensive national ED strategy for England to combat the rising prevalence and harm of EDs. Secondly, we specify the importance of ensuring that future governmental strategy incorporates evidence-based guidelines specific to remote delivery of ED services. This is crucial for promoting consistent provision of ED care. We set out the lack of comprehensive national data, and the need for further research into remote delivery of care. Finally, we provide recent research findings from the RHED-C project (Remote Healthcare for Eating Disorders throughout COVID-19) that present recommendations aimed at enhancing future service delivery for remote treatment and support.