Adaptation and implementation of an intervention programme on Spanish carers and adolescent patients with an eating disorder

INTERVENTION: Patients will be recruited from three different specialist inpatient/day‐patient eating disorder units. This study will involve adolescent girls who have received an eating disorder diagnosis according to DSM‐5 criteria. Patients will be asked to nominate a carer and the researcher will invite that carer to participate in the trial. After screening and consent, patients and their carers will be randomised as a dyad using a randomised computer‐generated sequence. Eating disorder patients and their carers will be randomised to receive either the ECHOMANTRA intervention as an add‐on to treatment‐as‐usual (TAU) or TAU alone. In the experimental group, the adaptation of the Echomantra programme, developed by Professor Janet Treasure and her research team (Cardi et al., 2017), will be implemented. This programme involves a skills‐sharing intervention for patients with eating disorders and their carers to facilitate the transition from hospital/day care centre back into the community. The ECHOMANTRA‐guided skills‐sharing intervention includes materials and eight online sessions (one per week) for carers and patients. Participants assigned to the control group will follow the treatment as usual (TAU) provided in the hospital center where they are receiving their treatment. A repeated measures analysis will be conducted at 3, 6, and 9 months following randomisation. CONDITION: Eating disorders ; Mental and Behavioural Disorders ; Eating disorders PRIMARY OUTCOME: ; 1. Psychological well‐being measured using Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS‐21) at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 2. Eating disorders symptoms measured using Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE‐Q) at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; SECONDARY OUTCOME: ; 1. Body mass index measured using weight and height at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 2. Obsessive‐compulsive symptoms measured using Obsessive‐Compulsive Inventory‐Revised (OCI‐R) at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 3. Perfectionism measured using Child and Adolescent Perfectionism Scale (CAPS) at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 4. Motivation to change measured using a Visual analogue scale that assesses confidence and importance in changing symptoms of ED at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 5. Psychosocial adjustment measured using Eating Disorders Quality of Life (EDQL) at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; 6. Number of days in hospital or day centre measured using a register at baseline, 3, 6, and 9 months; INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Adolescent girls who have received an eating disorder diagnosis according to DSM‐5 criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), including diagnoses of anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and other specified or unspecified eating disorders 2. Age between 12 and 19 years 3. No psychiatric comorbidity 4. Receiving treatment for ED in a specialist inpatient/day‐patient ED unit 5. A family member willing to participate in the study 6. Ability to manage an electronic device (e.g. mobile phone, computer, laptop, tablet) and the Internet in order to access the online sessions