Development and Testing of a Peer-Coaching Model for the Treatment of Eating Disorders

A total of 70 adolescents with eating disorders between the ages of 12-18 and their parents/caregivers will be enrolled in a randomized-controlled trial comparing parent coaching/patient education to parent education/patient coaching. Measures will include demographics, vitals, parent and patient self-efficacy, quality of life, illness related distress/impairment, and changes in eating disorder symptoms and severity.

During a screening and consenting visit, participants will complete assessments including height, weight, demographics, and interview questions to determine inclusion/exclusion criteria and eating disorder diagnoses. At baseline, patients and parents will complete online questionnaires via a REDCap interface, measuring self-efficacy, quality of life, and illness related distress/impairment.

During the intervention, participants will attend standard therapy sessions for the treatment of eating disorders, and patients and parents will be randomized to either have access to a designated coach or weekly educational materials. Patients and parents assigned to coaching will be able to contact their coach outside of their therapy session time for 15-minute coaching calls. Completed calls will be tracked to document engagement with coaching. Patients and parents assigned to weekly education materials will receive a link, which will direct them to YouTube videos related to the skills covered in therapy for that week. They will also receive a link with a few questions to document engagement with each video.

• Coaching: A coach trained in specific skills targeted to assist in family-based therapy, will be assigned to the parent/patient to be available throughout the 12-week intervention. The coach will available between the hours of 9am - 9pm, Monday - Sunday for a brief 15-minute coaching call. During the call, the coach will remind the parent/patient of family-based skills that can be utilized in vivo to address emerging situations. If a call is running over 15 minutes, the coach will refer them to their primary therapist or emergency services.
• Educational Materials: A 2-5 minute YouTube video will be distributed to the parent/patient weekly. Videos will incorporate a new skill learned in therapy that week.

Follow-up measures will be conducted mid-way through treatment and at the end-of-treatment, and these visits will involve patients and parents repeating the assessments administered during baseline.

Inclusion criteria

• Ages 12 to 18 at entry to the study
• DSM-5 Diagnosis of an eating disorder
• Enrollment in treatment at the Center of Excellence for Eating and Weight Disorders Speak English
• Have access to a phone with WiFi or a data plan
• Parent and child/patient both willing to participate

Exclusion criteria

• Current or lifetime history of learning disorder or developmental disorder
• Acute suicide risk