3
INITIAL ASSESSMENT AND EVALUATION
• Early intervention greatly increases the chances of recovery from
eating disorders. The problem is that it is not always easy to
identify when someone has an eating disorder.
• To help identify issues as early as possible, primary care clinicians
and mental health professionals may ask screening questions that
explore a person's relationship with food, weight, and self-image.
• One questionnaire that can be used to help identify an eating
disorder is the Eating Disorder Screen for Primary Care
(pictured below; answers marked with an asterisk suggest a
possible eating disorder).
Are you satisfied with your eating patterns?
Y / N*
Do you ever eat in secret?
Y* / N
Does your weight affect the way you feel about yourself?
Y* / N
Have any members of your family suffered with an eating
disorder?
Y* / N
Do you currently suffer with or have you ever suffered in
the past with an eating disorder?
Y* / N
Source: Eating Disorder Screen for Primary Care (Cotton et al. 2003)
• If the answers to screening questions suggest that an eating
disorder may be present, the clinician will ask for more
information to determine the type of eating disorder that is
present and its severity.
Seeking medical help is the first step in the
care process and the path to recovery.
