#110: Eating Disorder Advocacy in New Zealand with Victoria Schonwald

Victoria Schonwald NZRD lives in Christchurch New Zealand and runs a private practice called The Eat Clinic, with a special interest in eating disorders.

When Victoria set-up her private practice in NZ, she realized there was a huge problem. She received countless phone calls from distraught parents not knowing what to do to help their children suffering from eating disorders.

They were also struggling to get the help they needed. Victoria discovered some teenagers and people in their early 20s were being sent home from hospital and given end of life funeral plans because the treatment model and system was failing the patient.

This prompted Victoria to start a parent support group which enabled a team of feisty parents to help advocate to the Government for more funding and expertise for the treatment for all eating disorders in NZ.

Victoria is also working on bridging the gap between private and public health professionals to create better communication and patient focused care – with an individualized and adaptive approach.

We discuss topics including:

• How therapy “made her better” with having an eating disorder
• What eating disorder treatment is like in New Zealand
• The lack of communication in public providers in New Zealand
• Being Compassionate as a provider

SHOW NOTES:

www.theeatclinic.com

https://instagram.com/the_eat_clinic