Why ACUTE?

Eating disorders can be severe, extreme and life-threatening, with psychiatric and medical complications requiring immediate attention. Even in young people who are relatively new to their eating disorder, getting help can be a matter of life or death.

There’s a small group of people that have extreme forms of eating disorders who are at major risk of dying if they don't get urgent specialized medical treatment. Going to an emergency room or residential treatment center (RTC) is not the answer for someone who has medical instability from an extreme eating disorder. Sadly, very few medical providers are trained to identify and safely treat the medical issues caused by malnutrition and purging behaviors.

ACUTE treats people of all genders ages 15+. Its expert and renowned medical treatment helps patients alleviate or avoid medical complications of eating disorders, safely begins the refeeding process and provides mental health support.

“Safe weight restoration is the key to helping a patient with anorexia,” says Dr. Mehler, noting that ACUTE can administer any type of nutrition necessary, including oral, tube, and intravenous feeding. “For bulimia, we stabilize electrolytes that can become critically abnormal from self-induced vomiting and laxative abuse.” 

Patients receive around-the-clock care from expert doctors and nurses, as well as a multidisciplinary team including occupational therapy, physical therapy, psychology, psychiatry and dietary. ACUTE offers 24/7 telemetry monitoring versus other facilities such as RTCs, utilizing an EKG machine which provides a 10 second overview of the heart. ACUTE also provides 24/7 medical coverage which is far more intensive than what other RTC programs offer. Typically, these programs have a nurse practitioner off site and sometimes located states from the facility fielding phone calls. ACUTE offers all care provided on the unit and can handle any medical complication that arises. Most RTCs and lower levels of care need to send out to outside hospital for urgent situations.

This comprehensive approach addresses the individual’s physical and behavioral recovery needs and prepares the individual to seek further treatment at an RTC after they medically stabilize.