Child and Adolescent Program Details
Anorexia, bulimia and related food or body image disorders affect each young patient and family differently, but a common thread of sustainable recovery is participation of families in the treatment process. Eating Recovery Center’s Behavioral Hospital for Children and Adolescents offers comprehensive, individualized care to address the diverse medical, psychological and social needs of young patients, as well as an integrated family-based program to help empower families as agents of change in their child’s recovery.
Inpatient Program:
The foundation of any recovery begins with medical and psychiatric stability, which involves nutrition, rest and medication, to restore well being. The Inpatient program at Eating Recovery Center is designed to support children and teens that are acutely ill and are experiencing medical instability as a result of their eating disorder. This level of care focuses primarily on weight restoration and medical stabilization, and offers round-the-clock nursing supervision, direct psychiatric care and medication management. Nourishing meals and social support prepare patients to step-down to Residential level of care.
While the Inpatient level of care offers 24/7 medical and psychological support to address the physical complications that often arise as a result of an eating disorder, patients are not confined to a hospital bed or to their room. To the extent that they are physically able, patients are encouraged to participate in community meetings, groups and individual therapy and interact with the supportive treatment community of patients and staff.
Extremely low-weight child and adolescent patients may require medical stabilization prior to admission. In such circumstances, Eating Recovery Center partners with the A.C.U.T.E. Center (Acute Comprehensive Urgent Treatment for Eating Disorders) at Denver Health Medical Center. Patients stabilizing in the A.C.U.T.E. Center receive intensive medical support from Drs. Phil Mehler, Denver Health’s Chief Medical Officer and expert on the medical complications of eating disorders, and Jennifer Gaudiani, the Center’s Assistant Medical Director, as well as therapeutic support from Dr. Ovidio Bermudez, Medical Director of Child and Adolescent Services at Eating Recovery Center, to facilitate a successful transition to Inpatient treatment.
Residential Program:
Eating Recovery Center’s Residential program is designed for patients that need 24-hour support, but no longer require the medical support and stabilization at the same intensity as the Inpatient program. The Residential program offers round-the-clock observation and support, as well as daytime medical and psychiatric supervision. A structured schedule incorporates groups, community meetings and individual therapy to model a recovery-based daily structure to help patients overcome their destructive routines, rules and behaviors.
The Residential program focuses on helping patients understand the factors that are maintaining their eating disorders and gain recovery skills. Evidence-based clinical interventions that enhance behavioral change include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) while experiential therapies include art and yoga. Patients also participate in activities focused on structuring “downtime,” mindfulness and anxiety management tools. Supervised activity and meal outings, as well as passes for spending time with family, are available to help young patients test their recovery in real-life settings, and assist the treatment team in identifying the skills that need additional development prior to stepping down to a lower level of care.
Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP):
Eating Recovery Center’s Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) offers the intensity and structure of residential eating disorders treatment while providing opportunities for patients and families to practice recovery skills outside of the treatment environment.
At this level of care, one or both parents are asked to reside in the Denver area for a minimum of two weeks to participate in intensive Family-Based Treatment, in which parents actively engage in the therapeutic process and learn how to support the patient’s transition to life at home following treatment. Patients progressively transition to spending evenings and passes on the weekends with parent(s) at home or in affordable, recovery-focused accommodations near the treatment center.
By offering a full 12 hour day of programming every day of the week, patients are supported through all meals and snacks and have ample structure and containment to achieve symptom interruption and/or weight restoration. Combined with daytime medical support, PHP emphasizes the development of lifelong recovery skills in a safe, structured and supportive environment.A well-rounded curriculum offers staff-supported opportunities to practice for interactions and challenges outside of treatment through interactive group sessions, including:
- Community Meeting
- Process Group
- Body Image
- Strong Connections
- Identity
- DBT/CBT Skills
- Expressive Arts (Art Therapy)
- Nutrition
- Anxiety Tools
- Mindfulness
- Emotion Awareness
Outpatient Services:
Quick Links
Download a Child/Adolescent program sample schedule
Virtual Tour: Behavioral Hospital for Children and Adolescents
Outpatient programming focuses on teaching and practicing the skills necessary for young patients to remain healthy after leaving treatment. Patients can admit directly into Outpatient care, or step down to flexible Outpatient programming from a higher level of care to use these services in conjunction with their individualized aftercare plan. Available services include:
- Individual psychiatric evaluation and therapy
- Family therapy
- Group therapy
- Nutritional counseling
Medical and Clinical Leadership
Ovidio Bermudez, MD, FAAP, FSAHM, FAED, CEDS
Medical Director of Child and Adolescent Services
Elizabeth Easton, PsyD
Clinical Director of Child and Adolescent Services
Carolyn Jones, RN, LPC, CEDS
Director of Nursing
