Working with the medical profession, the Oak House is a specialist outpatient facility treating sufferers of all types of eating disorders including Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS) including Binge Eating Disorder and Obesity.

Services & philosophies

It is well recognised that effective treatment of this condition requires the expertise of a multidisciplinary team of professionals providing consistent therapy. Our specialist team of caring professionals have a diverse range of qualifications (psychology, social work, family therapy, behavioural science, education, and clinical and sports dietetics), career experience and personal strengths that ensures all clients receive therapy of the highest standards.

The Oak House team can support you in the effective treatment of your patients with eating disorders. Our programs are ideally suited as a step-down program from inpatient hospitalisation, to reduce/avoid the need of hospitalisation, or for clients with any degree of illness. As each client’s program is individually designed, the intensity of treatment is adjustable and dependent on each sufferer’s requirements.

One of the strengths of our treatment is that our team of qualified counsellors, dietitians, family therapists, and family support staff are housed under one roof and so provides a greater level of consistency in treatment methods and communication. We appreciate that this can aid in effective treatment practices.

As we are not a medical facility, we trust the medical management of each of our clients to the doctor of their choice. Our role is to ensure that all our clients receive adequate medical monitoring as part of effective treatment and to liaise with their medical practitioner on a regular basis.

Unlike other specialist eating disorder facilities, the Oak House does not have any weight, age or other demographic criteria for admission into our program, thus providing access to effective treatment for all. Instead, each client and their family visit the Oak House for an initial consultation to determine the suitability of our program.

The Oak House offers two types of programs depending on the individual needs of the client. Our adolescent program is family based treatment using the Maudsley Model that aims to assist parents in the process of bringing about recovery from an eating disorder with their son or daughter in the home setting. For more information on this approach, please contact us. Our adult program provides individually tailored, self-paced therapy (dietetic and counselling) conducted primarily one-on-one.

As many of our clients seek treatment at the Oak House via word-of-mouth recommendations, we do not require a written referral from a medical practitioner. However, we welcome and appreciate any prior contact from a treating practitioner before meeting with their patient and family in an initial consultation.

As appropriate, we refer our clients to other specialist medical practitioners and will liaise with them throughout the treatment program.

If you have a client that is in need of specialist eating disorder treatment, please contact us as we may be able to help. Likewise, we would be interested to hear from you if you are a health professional working with sufferers and may be willing to provide assistance to our clients.

Professional development and training

The Oak House can also provide you with specialist training covering topics such as early detection, treatment and medical monitoring of eating disorders.

The Oak House has developed a series of workshop/seminars that can be tailored to any audience. We have presented to GP divisions and other allied health professional groups sharing our specialist knowledge of eating disorders and effective treatment practices. We have also presented to schools and community groups. Each seminar is designed to provide practical skills, understanding and knowledge in assisting with the effective treatment of sufferers of eating disorders.

We would be happy to discuss professional development options with you. For further information, please contact us at the Oak House.

Further information on eating disorders

There are several organization providing invaluable and comprehensive information about eating disorders, services and resources that may be of benefit to you. Please note that none listed provide direct treatment.

• Victorian Centre of Excellence in Eating Disorders (CEED)
• Eating Disorder Foundation of Victoria (EDFV)
• The Butterfly Foundation