Introduction

Young people with eating disorders are treated in a range of service settings, but without, to date, good quality research evidence to determine which service configuration might benefit a particular patient at a particular time.

However, a number of recent clinical guidelines in the USA (APA, 2000), Australia and New Zealand (RANZCP, 2004), Finland (Ebeling et al., 2003) and the UK (NCCMH, 2004) have exhaustively reviewed the treatment literature and made recommendations for good practice.

In the UK two further initiatives have offered the possibility of a more comprehensive approach to commissioning and developing services along evidence-based lines. First, the publication of the Children's National Service Framework (NSF) for mental health (Department of Health, 2004) set standards and defined service models for the promotion and treatment of mental health. It emphasized the need for age-appropriate services for children and young people requiring specialist intervention, whilst also acknowledging that in some adolescent cases where intensive, specialized treatment is required, contributions from services oriented to adults may be required. Second, an internet-based multidisciplinary special interest group of clinicians and academics, EDNet, was established to provide a forum for professionals, users and carers to review current knowledge and support service developments.

This chapter will review models of service delivery, the evidence to support them and the associated recommendations in clinical guidelines. Where evidence is lacking, priorities for further research are highlighted.