The BRIDGE: Intensive Outpatient and Partial Hospitalization Program for Adolescent Eating Disorders

Your bridge to eating disorder recovery

Teens with anorexia nervosa, bulimia or other eating disorders rarely grow out of the condition or overcome it on their own. They need professional help. With prompt treatment from adolescent eating disorders specialists and support from family, recovery is possible.

The Beaumont Children's Hospital adolescent eating disorders BRIDGE program offers partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient treatment options to serve as a "bridge" between inpatient and outpatient care for both patients and their families. Part of the Beaumont Hough Center for Adolescent Health, the program connects patients to recovery through an empowering and collaborative approach, involving parents every step of the way.

Why the BRIDGE program?

The Beaumont Hough Center for Adolescent Health BRIDGE program completes a full spectrum of eating disorder treatment options available to Southeastern Michigan adolescents and young adults ages 10 to 22. Providing skills and support to both young people and their parents enables collaboration that is beneficial in the recovery process.

For those requiring more than just outpatient interdisciplinary care, the intensive outpatient program and/or the partial hospitalization program offered through the BRIDGE may reduce the need for inpatient medical care or out-of-state residential treatment. For many families, the program not only makes it possible for parents to become more involved in the recovery process, but also may be more convenient and less costly.

Parent-involved recovery options

The BRIDGE program provides multiple options for intermediate levels of care, including:

• The intensive outpatient program (IOP) runs from 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. three days per week and includes an afternoon snack and dinner each day.
• The regular day partial hospitalization program (PHP) runs from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. five days per week and includes two meals and two snacks each day.
• The extended day partial hospitalization program runs from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. five days per week and includes three meals and two snacks each day.

These options enable greater parent involvement, which is critical to success and has been shown to expedite recovery in many patients.