Refer a patient

When to refer a patient to The Emily Program

As with other mental and physical disorders, a healthcare professional must recognize the signs of a problem or potential problem, and then intervene effectively. If you suspect food, body image, weight, and/or eating issues, the American Academy of Family Physicians and American Psychiatric Association suggest that you act quickly.

Know the common eating disorder symptoms

Use the common symptoms list and simple screening tool below. We also offer educational events to help your team screen for eating disorders, understand their effects, and access available treatment resources.

Eating disorders present physiologically and behaviorally. The multidisciplinary team at The Emily Program recommends checking for common symptoms, such as:

• Dramatic weight gain or loss
• Verbal preoccupation with food, weight, and shape
• Medical complications, such as amenorrhea, bradycardia, unexpected osteopenia or osteoporosis, electrolyte abnormalities, low body temperature, orthostatic hypotension
• Rapid or persistent decline or increase in food intake
• Purging; restricting; binge eating; compulsive eating; compulsive exercising; abuse of diet pills, laxatives, diuretics, or emetics
• Denial of food and eating problems, despite concerns of others
• Eating in secret, hiding food, disrupting family meals, feeling out of control with food

Start the conversation

Ask if it is okay to discuss eating habits: “I’m concerned about your eating (or weight, body image, etc.). May we discuss how you typically eat and your relationship with food?”

Then ask your patient these questions:

• Do you worry about your weight and body shape more than other people?
• Do you avoid certain foods for reasons other than allergies or religious reasons?
• Are you often on a diet?
• Do you feel your weight is an important aspect of your identity?
• Are you fearful of gaining weight?
• Do you often feel out of control when you eat?
• Do you regularly eat what others may consider to be a large quantity of food at one time?
• Do you regularly eat until feeling uncomfortably full?
• Do you hide what you eat from others, or eat in secret?
• Do you often feel fat?
• Do you feel guilty or depressed after eating?
• Do you ever make yourself vomit (throw up) after eating?
• Do you use your insulin in ways not prescribed to manage your weight?
• Do you take any medication or supplement to compensate for eating or to give yourself permission to eat?
• Do you exercise for the sole purpose of weight control?
• Have people expressed concern about your relationship with food or your body? 

Two or more “yes” answers strongly indicates the presence of disordered eating. 

Streamlined admission

To ensure your patient can get treatment as soon as possible, they will be connected with an Intake Therapist, who will conduct an intake assessment, determine the level of care, schedule an admit date, and start the process to secure medical data and arrange any necessary lodging.

Stay involved

To stay informed of your patient’s progress throughout their eating disorder treatment, ask them to complete a Release of Information form so we have permission to share health information with you.

Talk with the experts at The Emily Program

The Emily Program staff is available to assist. Call us at 1-888-364-5977, use our online referral form, or send your patient to our website to request an eating disorder assessment.

Complete the information below or call us at 1-888-364-5977. We’ll contact your patient within one business day to learn more about their condition. We’ll keep you updated on our progress, too.