The Australian experience of day programs for patients with eating disorders

To describe the authors' experience in establishing and implementing day programs for the treatment of eating disorders in Australia.

This is a descriptive article based on the author's experience. Five-day programs are described in terms of their structure, theoretical orientation, and intended outcome.

The authors conclude that day programs need to be matched to the heterogeneous needs of the patients according to their stage of change. The further the patient is towards an action stage of change the less supervision of their eating- and skills-based therapy is required. Accordingly, treatment can be more focused on understanding the factors that maintain the eating disorder on a more extensive day program. Patients with longstanding eating disorders that have not responded to traditional treatments may benefit from a readiness and motivational therapy approach in a day program.