Treatment stages

The four-stage treatment process at Newmarket House places a strong emphasis not only on facilitating the restoration of weight to a healthy level but also on helping patients to build hope and confidence, develop a sense of autonomy, embrace an identity beyond their eating disorder and look to a future no longer dictated by illness.

In Stage 1, the emphasis is on the patient and team getting to know each other, developing an in-depth understanding of the patient’s eating disorder and broader psychology, establishing trust and building a strong therapeutic alliance, while providing intensive support with eating and other areas of difficulty.

In Stage 2, patients continue their physical and psychological recovery, with a gradual process of handing back responsibility for meal preparation, eating and other aspects of daily care from the team to the patient. Therapeutic groups, individual therapy and other clinical interventions help patients develop the strength and internal resources to challenge their eating disorder and, increasingly, support themselves.

In Stage 3, patients start going on leave and transposing their progress in eating and other goals into their home context and other relevant settings, as well as using this stability to re-engage with other aspects of life such as relationships, personal interests and vocational pursuits.

In Stage 4, patients prepare for discharge and transition back to their home treatment teams and their next phase of recovery in the community. In this stage, they are also encouraged to become increasingly flexible and spontaneous in their approach to eating and other aspects of life.

This staged process is designed to reflect our theory of recovery and to offer a clear, structured approach. However, while all patients move through the same stages, we recognise that each patient differs in terms of the challenges they face and what they require to make progress from one stage to the next. The content of treatment at each stage is individualised to reflect the unique needs and strengths of each patient.