EATING DISORDER CASE STUDY

A Case Study
T is a 15 year old girl and she is the worry of her parents because she has been on an endless obsessive diet. So much is it baffling to them because T has never been over-weight, neither has she ever struggled with her weight since she was born. T always put out the vibe to her parents that she seemed never satisfied with her weight. She kept wanting more; it never seemed just enough. As a result, she became more and more withdrawn and depression kicked in together with anxiety. Her parents’ concerns always fell flat; she didn’t change, neither did she want to. She went to the lengths of ceasing eating with her parents and instead spending most of her time in the bedroom; keeping to herself. She was a top performer in school and still was doing well but her friends were worried sick about her. Her parents’ fussing about her eating plans always irritated her and she told them off. T’s brother and sister became agitated with her and wouldn’t talk with her because of all the raucous she was propagating because of her eating disorders.
In a bizarre twist of events, T’s parents got a call from the school informing them that T had fallen down and immediately fainted. She had been promptly rushed to hospital. On a later date, T was discharged but with a condition; that she consults a health care provider specializing in eating disorders. Consequently, T was taken to hospital by her parents; and basing on her weight, which was so low and dangerous, and the pulse (36/min) and her temperature (34.5C), she was immediately admitted. She was thoroughly assessed, both physically and mentally; her blood sample was taken for tests and an electrocardiogram (ECG) was performed on her. The prognosis demanded that she be on a bed rest with a 24-hour care. A systematic feeding was administered to her because she was diagnosed to have bradycardia and hypothermia.
From then onwards, as her weight increased so did the critical observations on her faring on increase. As a sign of getting better, healthcare providers allocated a therapist who catered for all her needs which is otherwise known as the intensive care programme. After a further one month, T was transferred to a support group in order to heal from her psychiatric conditions and was also moved to an acute maintenance bed. The acute care given did eventually pay off as T recovered fully. She was as a consequence assigned for follow ups to ensure she recovered fully, and remained so. The care givers assigned to her case were beyond doubt happy at how her prognosis was going on.

What are the key area of concern in this case?
What theory (s) might offer an insight into this case?
What laws and policies apply to this case?
What ethical principles apply to this case?

Utilitarianism Non-Maleficence

Deontology

Utilitarianism

• Your case study and discussion on the topic should not be based on your own subjective opinions

• Your case study and discussion should demonstrate that you have read widely around the subject

• Your assignment should only include credible academic sources

• You must adhere to the Harvard referencing system

• You must present a balanced critical discussion

• You must end your assignment with a conclusion

Assignment guidance

Your assignment for this module must include the following:

1. An Introduction: This should sign post the reader through the order and content of the assignment e.g.

3. Issues: A critical discussion of the issues raised in your case study e.g.
• Prevalence
• Causes
• Theories /concepts
• Ethical issues and principles e.g. beneficence/justice etc. e.g.

The ethical issues that relate to this case include…

4. Criticality: A critique of relevant government policies /legislation; it is imperative not to just describe the policies / legislation you must critique them i.e. their strengths and limitations and the implications e.g.

In response to the growing need to address the issue of … the Equality Act (1998) was introduced; the aim of the Act (1998) is to …

The limitations of the Equality Act (1998) include…

This discussion must be based on evidence not your own subjective opinions!

You can find critiques of polices and legislation at organisations such as the
• Kings Fund,
• Audit Commission (now obsolete but some material still exists)
• Peer reviewed articles

5. Conclusion: This must sum up your discussion and the findings based on the evidence you have critiqued. You should not introduce new information at this stage.

6. References: You must adhere to the Universitys’ Harvard referencing system i.e.

• the last name of the author or the name of the organisation
• the year of publication
• page numbers if it’s a direct quote

The reference page should include:
• The last name or organisations name
• Initial
• Year of publication or year downloaded
• The name of the article/chapter or publication or book title
• The publishers name e.g. Palgrave
• The location of the published e.g. London