| Description |
Eating disorders affect individuals physically and mentally, are more prevalent in young adults, and are associated with multiple comorbidities. Eating disorders occur in 5% of the United States (US) population and up to 10-20% of undergraduate college students. Despite the prevalence, only 45% of US college campuses are screening for eating disorders, and primary care providers (PCPs) are often not effectively screening due to barriers such as lack of time, knowledge, and confidence. PCPs are often the first providers that patients with eating disorders will see; however, treatment for such disorders is often delayed due to ineffective screening. No eating disorder screening occurred at a local university student clinic. Methods: To address ineffective screening, this quality improvement project aimed to implement a new screening process, create PCP-targeted training to ensure usability and feasibility, and disseminate a resource list that providers could share with student patients showing signs of eating disorders. This project took place at a local university student clinic. A pre-survey given to PCPs revealed that no screening was occurring and revealed barriers. Training materials and a patient resource list were developed and presented to the PCPs. From October 9th, 2023, to November 17th, 2023, all new patients filled out a new patient form, which included the 4-item Eating Disorder Screen for Primary Care (ESP) tool, which the PCP evaluated. If scored positively, the PCP would administer the 12-item Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire Short (EDE-QS). Following this screening, the patient was provided with a resource list. Weekly monitoring and follow-up for feedback and questions were completed utilizing a Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA) cycle as recommended by the Institute of Healthcare Improvement. A post-implementation survey was given to the providers to assess the feasibility, usability, and satisfaction of the screening process and resource list. Results: The pre-intervention survey (n=6) revealed that before this quality improvement (QI) project, there were no eating disorder screening, treatment, or resource plans used at the health center. During this project, 206 new patients were screened with the ESP tool, and 30 (14.5%) scored positive for further assessment and were offered the EDE-QS. Sixteen (53%) agreed to take the additional screening, and five (31.2%) scored positively. All 30 patients given the additional screening were offered the resource list, and 21 (70%) were accepted. All providers acknowledged that the project was usable, feasible, and satisfactory. Conclusion: This QI project implemented a standardized, evidence-based eating disorder screening process at the clinic and provided resources for patients with signs of eating disorders. This QI project identified early signs of eating disorders in patients who otherwise would not have been screened, equipped the providers and patients to prevent long-term impacts of eating disorders, and trained providers on multi-disciplinary approaches to treating eating disorders. |
