Evaluation of the Communities of Healing Mentorship/Support Group Program: Assessment of Preliminary Efficacy

Evaluation of the Communities of Healing Mentorship/Support Group Program: Assessment of Preliminary Efficacy

Evaluation of the Communities of Healing Mentorship/Support Group Program: Assessment of Preliminary Efficacy

The goal of the study is to evaluate two 6-month adjunct interventions (peer mentorship and social support mentorship) for individuals with eating disorders. Individuals will be randomized to peer-mentorship, social support mentorship, or a wait-list and eating disorder symptoms will be evaluated at baseline and post-treatment.

Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses associated with significant morbidity and high relapse rates. Patients are at especially high risk of relapse after leaving structured treatment (e.g., hospitalization). Adjunct interventions targeting patients' motivation and participation in treatment at these times may help patients recover from eating disorders. Project HEAL is a non-profit organization whose mission is to reduce suffering caused by eating disorders, and they have recently developed two adjunct, mentorship-based interventions for patients in recovery. In the peer mentorship condition, individuals meet weekly with a peer mentor who has previously recovered from an eating disorder in order to discuss symptoms and coping strategies. In the social support mentorship condition, individuals meet weekly with a social support mentor who has not personally struggled with an eating disorder in order to engage in activities unrelated to the eating disorder. The aim of the current study is to evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of this intervention. The design of the study is a three-arm randomized controlled trial comparing peer mentorship, social-support mentorship, and wait-list control conditions. Participants in the study will be randomized to one of the three conditions for six months. Wait-list participants will subsequently receive either type of mentorship. Participants will complete assessments of their eating disorder symptoms at baseline, monthly throughout the course of the study, and one year after beginning the study. Outcomes will be compared between groups.

Randomization occurs at the beginning of each individual's participation in the study. Participants are randomized to one condition and not re-randomized during any portion of the study

Since this is a behavioral intervention, participants, care providers, and investigators are aware of each patient's randomization. Outcomes are assessed electronically.

Participants meet weekly with an adult peer mentor who has recovered from an eating disorder. The focus of meetings is on eating disorder symptoms and how to overcome them. The goal of this program is to reduce eating disorder symptoms directly by receiving support and guidance from someone who has been through it.

Participants meet weekly with an adult mentor who has not personally struggled with an eating disorder but who is dedicated to offering support. During weekly meetings, participants and mentors (and possibly 1-2 other mentees) engage in activities unrelated to the eating disorder. The goal of this program is to reduce eating disorder symptoms indirectly by exploring aspects of self outside the eating disorder.

Participants are on a wait list and then get matched with either type of mentor (of their choice) 6 months later

Weekly meetings with a recovered peer mentor once per week. Dyads discuss eating disorder symptoms and how to overcome them.

Weekly meetings with a social support mentor who has not personally struggled with an eating disorder, once per week. Dyads engage in activities unrelated to the eating disorder (e.g., a movie, a community event, volunteer work).

Recovery Record is a smart phone or web-based application designed to provide recovery support to eating disorder patients. Includes a number of features aimed to promote recovery, such as a meal tracking, prompts for completing meals/snacks, tracking for additional symptoms such as stress and mood, motivational messages, information about coping strategies, and capacity to share logged data with clinicians and mentors.

Units on a scale from 0 - 4 ( 0 = 0 days; 1 = A few (1-2) days; 2 = About half (3-4) days; 4 = Most (5-6) days; 4 = All (7) days Range was 0 - 4

The Eating Pathology Symptoms Inventory (EPSI) is a self-report questionnaire that includes 8 subscales and we used the Body Dissatisfaction subscale. Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert-style scale (0 = Never; 4= Often) to describe how well each item describes the participant's experiences. Scores are derived by summing responses across the questions included in each subscale. The range for Body dissatisfaction is 0 - 28. Higher scores are reflective of greater eating pathology.

The Eating Pathology Symptoms Inventory (EPSI) is a self-report questionnaire that includes 8 subscales and we used the Cognitive Restraint subscale. Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert-style scale (0 = Never; 4= Often) to describe how well each item describes the participant's experiences. Scores are derived by summing responses across the questions included in each subscale. The range for Cognitive Restraint is 0 - 12. Higher scores are reflective of greater eating pathology.

The Eating Pathology Symptoms Inventory (EPSI) is a self-report questionnaire that includes 8 subscales and we used the Restricting subscale. Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert-style scale (0 = Never; 4= Often) to describe how well each item describes the participant's experiences. Scores are derived by summing responses across the questions included in each subscale. The range for Restricting is 0 - 24. Higher scores are reflective of greater eating pathology.

Inclusion Criteria: Current or past 6 months AN, BN, or BED Recent (within 6 months) discharge from structured treatment Involved in outpatient treatment at an appropriate level of care Medical stability Access to smart phone or computer to complete study assessments Exclusion Criteria: Evidence of needing specialized treatment for another medical or mental health condition