About this course

Learning Objectives

• Select the most appropriate assessment when working with a diverse client range.
• Compare the DSM-5 criteria for eating disorders with our current understanding of what communities have been excluded from clinical research.
• Identify a range of risk factors in regards to identity, health, experience, and societal factors.
• Recognize the stages of the recovery process and barriers to recovery.
• Measure the severity of a patient's symptoms and devise and appropriate higher level care plan
• Recognize common co-occurring conditions and how they contribute to eating disorder symptoms, and conduct an approach for the treatment of an eating disorder with a co-occurring psychological and/or behavioral diagnosis

Learning Levels

• Beginner

Course Instructor(s)

• 

  Kelli Rugless

  Licensed Psychologist and Chief Clinical Officer at Project HEAL

  Dr. Kelli Rugless is a licensed psychologist, certified eating disorders specialist, and the Chief Clinical Officer at Project HEAL, a nonprofit organization committed to equitable access to eating disorder healing for all people. Dr. Rugless is also the owner of a bicoastal group practice, Flourish Psychology, where she specializes in women's mental health and the treatment of eating disorders and body image. In her work at Project HEAL she has participated in the development of an identity-driven eating disorder training curriculum for behavioral health professionals in an effort to reduce some of the access barriers to this type of training and encourage more clinicians from all backgrounds to join the eating disorder professional community. She hails from Southern California but currently lives and works in Maryland. In her free time, she enjoys her grandmother's hobbies including reading, sewing, and gardening with her husband and three sons.

References

• Penwell, T. E., Bedard, S. P., Eyre, R., & Levinson, C. A. (2024). Eating Disorder Treatment Access in the United States: Perceived Inequities Among Treatment Seekers. Psychiatric services (Washington, D.C.), appips20230193. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.20230193
• Lock, J., & Le Grange, D. (2018). Family-based treatment: Where are we and where should we be going to improve recovery in child and adolescent eating disorders. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 52(4). https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.22980
• Weiss, C.V., Mills, J.S., Westra, H.A. et al. A preliminary study of motivational interviewing as a prelude to intensive treatment for an eating disorder. J Eat Disord 1, 34 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1186/2050-2974-1-34
• Longhurst, P., & Clark, L. (2022). Integrating the Autistic Experience Into Existing Models for Disordered Eating. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.926415
• Trottier, K., MacDonald, D.E. Update on Psychological Trauma, Other Severe Adverse Experiences and Eating Disorders: State of the Research and Future Research Directions. Curr Psychiatry Rep 19, 45 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-017-0806-6
• Brewerton, T. D. (2019). An Overview of Trauma-Informed Care and Practice for Eating Disorders. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 28(4), 445–462. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2018.1532940
• Blodgett Salafia, E.H., Jones, M.E., Haugen, E.C. et al. Perceptions of the causes of eating disorders: a comparison of individuals with and without eating disorders. J Eat Disord 3, 32 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-015-0069-8
• Kutz, A.M., Marsh, A.G., Gunderson, C.G. et al. Eating Disorder Screening: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of Diagnostic Test Characteristics of the SCOFF. J GEN INTERN MED 35, 885–893 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-019-05478-6
• Duffy, M. E., Calzo, J. P., Lopez, E., Silverstein, S., Joiner, T. E., & Gordon, A. R. (2021). Measurement and construct validity of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire Short Form in a transgender and gender diverse community sample. Psychological Assessment, 33(5), 459–463. https://doi.org/10.1037/pas0000996
• Ben-Porath, D., Duthu, F., Luo, T., Gonidakis, F., Compte, E. J., & Wisniewski, L. (2020). Dialectical behavioral therapy: an update and review of the existing treatment models adapted for adults with eating disorders. Eating Disorders, 28(2), 101–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/10640266.2020.1723371