Aug. 2013
 
In This Issue
Meeting Your Needs
Free Webinar Series
Medical Minute
In the News
Research & Publication
ACUTE Outreach
About ACUTE
Quick Links

 

ACUTE Referral Criteria  



Connect with Us on LinkedIn

Contact Us:
877 ACUTE 4U

(877-228-8348)

ACUTE Events
 

August 22:

Denver, CO

ACUTE Tour & Meet the Experts Reception

5th Annual Eating Recovery Center Foundation Eating Disorders Conference

Email or call for details!

 

September 24:

San Antonio, TX

EDCASA Hosted Speaking Event w/ Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani

Rachael Harriman,

Exhibiting

 

October 10-12:

Washington, DC

National Eating Disorders Association Conference

Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani, Presenting

Rachael Harriman, Exhibiting

 

October 24-25:

Nashville, TN

Eating Disorder Coalition of Tennessee Annual Forum

Rachael Harriman,

Exhibiting

 

ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders at Denver Health is the nation's only specialized medical stabilization  center providing care for  the most medically compromised eating disorder patients. For more information about ACUTE or a free medical assessment, call 877 ACUTE 4U or visit ACUTE online.

 

The ACUTE Difference

 

Highly individualized, one-on-one care for your most medically compromised patients.

  

ACUTE stands alone as the only specialized medical stabilization program in the country for adults with severe anorexia and bulimia nervosa. Part of ACUTE's unique approach to treatment is the highly-individualized one-on-one care each patient receives. 

Vertical Mehler Patient

      

ACUTE patients benefit from a setting unlike any other program they've experienced - one focused solely on the individual.

 

Each patient is welcomed into a private room on ACUTE's dedicated medical unit away from the distraction of a milieu setting. ACUTE does not incorporate group therapies or meals and rather encourages patients to focus wholly on their own recovery and avoid harmful comparative and competitive behaviors. 

 

Every patient that enters ACUTE receives a highly individualized  treatment plan designed to achieve the following:

  •  Treat medical complications associated with severe anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa
  • Avoid and manage the potentially fatal risks of refeeding syndrome
  • Prepare him/her for a smooth transition into a traditional inpatient or residential eating disorder treatment program

 

 

ACUTE Center Highlights:

 

  • Denver Health's nationally acclaimed medical care
  • One-to-one treatment with a multidisciplinary team of expert providers
  • Daily (M-F) dietary and therapeutic support as needed
  • In-room patient assistant available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
  • Comprehensive discharge planning and coordination of continued care

 

 

To learn more about ACUTE's unique treatment approach or to make a referral, please call 877 ACUTE 4U.

 

  

 

The ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders Experience
The ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders Experience

 

 

ACUTE Free Webinar Series

  

In June 2013 ACUTE introduced its Free Educational Webinar Series and hosted the first session in July with outstanding success. Over 75 professionals from around the country participated in the interactive online session and provided wonderful feedback.

 

"Dr. G was wonderful! She helped me to understand   complex medical issues with ease, and offered great suggestions for communicating these issues directly with my patients. Very helpful!"

 

The first webinar, Medical Complications of Restricting AN-R, was the first in a series of webinars to be led by Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani, ACUTE's Assistant Medical Director. Each month, another topic will be introduced in a 1 hour format with time for interactive Q&A from the group. Dr. Gaudiani's presentations include an overview of common medical complications, management techniques, and key points to discuss with patients. 

 

2013 Series Schedule

  • 7/9  Medical Complications of Severe Restricting
  • 9/11 Medical Complications of Severe Purging
  • 10/9 Electrolyte Abnormalities & Gastrointestinal Complications
  • 11/13 Osteoporosis in Eating Disorders
  • 12/11 Special Populations & Unusual Findings (Eating Disoders in Males, Patients 35+, Diabetes & Eating Disorders)

Mark your calendar! Webinars will be scheduled at 9:30 and 11:30 AM, Mountain Time. Registration space for each session will be limited so reserve your space early! Registration details to follow.

 

 Webinar Screenshot

 
ACUTE Medical Minute 
 
The Refeeding Syndrome: Who's At Risk? 

During early nutritional rehabilitation, also known as refeeding, serious and potentially fatal complications can occur due to the shift in electrolytes and fluid within the body. Symptoms of refeeding syndrome include weakness, inability to breath, seizures, cognitive impairment, confusion, cardiac arrest, heart failure, coma and even death.

  

Not all at-risk patients with anorexia or bulimia nervosa will develop full refeeding syndrome. However, according to a recent ACUTE study of the most at-risk patients, no single marker was found to identify which patients would develop complications of refeeding syndrome. With this knowledge, we can conclude that it is critical that every patient who is at risk for developing complications of refeeding syndrome is monitored by experienced medical professionals during the early refeeding process.

 

Identifying Risk for Refeeding Syndrome


ONE or more of the following:
TWO or more of the following:
BMI < 16BMI < 18.5

Weight loss of >15% in the

previous 3-6 months

Weigth loss of >10%
in the previous 3-6 months

Little or no nutritional

intake for >10 days

Little or no nutritional

intake for >5 days

Low levels of potassium,

phosphorus, or magnesium

prior to refeeding

History of alcohol or substance

abuse, including insulin,

laxative or diuretic abuse.

 

National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE)

Guidelines for Management of Refeeding Syndrome

 

Click here for more information about refeeding syndrome and ACUTE's specialized medical stabilization program.

 
ACUTE in the News
  
Denver becoming  hub for treating eating disorders among both genders (Denver Post)
  

Although men and boys make up an increasing percentage of the estimated 10 million Americans who struggle with eating disorders, few residential treatment centers will help them.

 

The four largest eating disorder clinics in Denver - ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders, Children's Hospital Colorado, Eating Disorder Center of Denver and Eating Recovery Center - are on a very short list of U.S. programs that accept both genders for treatment of anorexia and bulimia.

 

Today, males make up more than 10 percent of patients with eating disorders, according to the National Association of Anorexia and Associated Disorders.

 

"The cultural pressure around the drive for thinness has over the years expanded beyond the target audience of women and teenagers," said Dr. Jennifer Hagman, director of Children's Hospital of Denver, "It's really not leaving anyone out anymore." 

 

Read More
  

 

Starving in the Shadows: Physicians with Eating Disorders (Eating Disorders Online)
  
Medical school is known for being extremely stressful, and Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani says that this overwhelming stress often triggers an eating disorder, which can continue on past medical school. Dr. Gaudiani also points out that medical students are often perfectionists, which is a very common trait among eating disorder patients. Watch to find out more about this increasingly common phenomenon.  
  
 
Starving in the Shadows: Physicians With Eating Disorders
Starving in the Shadows: Physicians With Eating Disorders
 
ACUTE Research & Publication
  

In an effort to share our expertise, and set the standard for medical care in the industry, Dr. Philip Mehler and the ACUTE staff actively publish their findings on the medical complications of severe eating disorders.

 

Pan MD RN consult 

 
Below is a list of the team's recent publications available for review:

 

ER management of patients with eating disorders. Trent SA, Moreira ME, Colwell CB, Mehler PS. Am J Emerg Med. 2013 Apr 23. doi:pii: S0735-6757(13)00140-X. 10.1016/j.ajem.2013.02.035.  [Epub ahead of print]

PMID: 23623238

 

Hematological abnormalities in severe anorexia nervosa. Sabel AL, Gaudiani JL, Statland B, Mehler PS. Ann Hematol. 2013 May;92(5):605-13. doi: 10.1007/s00277-013-1672-x. Epub 2013 Feb 8.

PMID: 23392575

 

Elevation of liver function tests in severe anorexia nervosa. Harris RH, Sasson G, Mehler PS. Int J Eat Disord. 2013 May;46(4):369-74. doi: 10.1002/eat.22073. Epub 2012 Dec 20.

PMID: 23280717

 

 
ACUTE Information Close to Home
 
  
Rachael HeadshotACUTE's Program Manager, Rachael Harriman, handles all admissions and outreach events for ACUTE. This fall, she will be visiting professionals and treatment programs across the country to share additional information about the programs available at ACUTE. If you would like to schedule a visit, or are interested in having Drs. Mehler or Gaudiani speak at an upcoming event, email Rachael today! 
  
  

We look forward to meeting you!
  
  
About ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders at Denver Health

 

Philip S Mehler, MD, FAED, FACP, CEDS
Philip S. Mehler, MD, FAED, FACP, CEDS

Led by Dr. Philip Mehler and Dr. Jennifer Gaudiani, patients are offered the very best in medical stabilization and treatment, a compassionate and highly experienced nursing staff, individual psychotherapy, physical therapy, and thorough discharge planning to help them begin recovering. The ACUTE Center is tailored to help both males and females who cannot seek care in a traditional inpatient or residential treatment setting due to the severity of their weight loss or other medical complications. ACUTE contracts with most insurance companies and uses the patient's medical

insurance benefit for stabilization care.

Jennifer L Gaudiani, MD, CEDS
Jennifer L. Gaudiani, MD, CEDS

 

Who to refer to ACUTE for stabilization:

  • Any patient weighing less than 70% of his/her ideal body weight
  • Serious medical complications (electrolyte disorders, fluid problems, organ failure, previous bouts of refeeding syndrome)
  • Need to "detox" from severe purging, laxative or diuretic abuse

 

Denver Health Logo 

 

ACUTE Center for Eating Disorders | 777 Bannock St, Denver, CO 80204 | 

877 ACUTE 4U  |  www.denverhealth.org/acute  |  (877) 228-8348