An examination of the impact of the Maudsley Collaborative Care skills training workshops on patients with anorexia nervosa: a qualitative study

Abstract

Purpose: The objective of this study was to examine the experience of adult inpatients with Anorexia Nervosa (AN) whose carers had taken part in the Collaborative Care skills training workshops. Workshops were offered to carers of someone with an eating disorder (ED) to address carer distress and proposed interpersonal maintaining factors.

Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted probing the sufferer's perception of the workshops, their experience of their carers attending the workshops and any associated behaviour change.

Results: Qualitative data were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Key findings suggest that patients hold positive attitudes towards involving carers in their care and that the skills training approach can have positive effects for AN adult inpatients. Positive effects are congruent with workshop aims supporting fidelity of the skills based training. Negative effects and ideas for improvements were examined.

Conclusion: Involving carers in skills based Collaborative Care workshops based on an interpersonal maintenance model of EDs may be beneficial for adult inpatients with AN and future research is warranted to extend these findings.

Keywords: anorexia nervosa; carers; eating disorders; family intervention; interpretative phenomenological analysis.