Assessing implementation fidelity in the First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders service model.

Background: The First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders (FREED) service model is associated with significant reductions in wait times and improved clinical outcomes for emerging adults with recent-onset eating disorders. An understanding of how FREED is implemented is a necessary precondition to enable an attribution of these findings to key components of the model, namely the wait-time targets and care package.

Aims: This study evaluated fidelity to the FREED service model during the multicentre FREED-Up study.

The First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders - Upscaled study: Clinical outcomes.

Background: First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders (FREED) is a service model and care pathway for emerging adults aged 16 to 25-years with a recent onset eating disorder (ED) of <3 years. A previous single-site study suggests that FREED significantly improves clinical outcomes compared to treatment-as-usual (TAU). The present study (FREED-Up) assessed the scalability of FREED.

"I'm truly free from my eating disorder": Emerging adults' experiences of FREED, an early intervention service model and care pathway for eating disorders.

Background: Eating disorders (EDs) typically start during adolescence or emerging adulthood, periods of intense biopsychosocial development. FREED (First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for EDs) is a service model and care pathway providing rapid access to developmentally-informed care for emerging adults with EDs. FREED is associated with reduced duration of untreated eating disorder and improved clinical outcomes, but patients' experiences of treatment have yet to be assessed.

Assessing the impact of First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders on duration of untreated eating disorder: A multi-centre quasi-experimental study.

Background: Duration of untreated eating disorder (DUED), that is, the time between illness onset and start of first evidence-based treatment, is a key outcome for early intervention. Internationally, reported DUED ranges from 2.5 to 6 years for different eating disorders (EDs).