Rise in number of young males with eating disorders
THERE has been a rise in the number of young male patients with eating disorders being referred to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.
The figure represents about 10% of the total number of patients, said consultant psychiatrist Dr Dominic Bishop.
A recent NHS report showed that eating disorders among adult men had risen by some 70% over the last six years.
Locally, Dr Bishop said that there is a small number of people who have the symptoms of an eating disorder.
A team works across Adult Mental Health Services and Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service, which is a multidisciplinary group comprising psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses and a dietician.
He said that the team is supported by an off-island specialist consultant psychiatrist from Vincent Square Eating Disorder Service in Central London. The consultant visits the island every three months, but is also available for advice between these times.
Crevichon Ward, in conjunction with the PEH, can provide treatment for a proportion of adults with an eating disorder who need inpatient treatment, said Dr Bishop. More severe cases are referred off-island to Vincent Square.
Under-18s can be admitted to the Children’s Ward at the PEH where they would fall under the care of paediatrics, with close liaison with Camhs. Again, severe cases would be treated off-island.
‘At any one time we have between 15-20 individuals with an eating disorder on our case-load, of varying severity,’ he said.
The figure for Camhs alone is between five and 10 young people.
But while referral rates within adult services have been fairly static, and the majority of the cases have been female, ‘Camhs has seen a rise in male referrals [to the service], which now equates to approximately 10%; broadly the same as the UK’.
‘We are aware that health trends in Guernsey often lag behind those in the UK, so we are mindful of this potential change in the future.'
