BC Mental Health and Addiction Services is the agency responsible for the provincial specialized eating disorders program. The program is managed in partnership with Providence Health Care, which delivers the adult service.

Eating disorders – anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, and binge eating disorder – affect thousands of British Columbians. Defined as a serious disturbance of eating behaviour, eating disorders are often complex and difficult to diagnose. They are commonly linked to other disorders such as substance abuse, depression and anxiety disorders. ED is often a chronic disease with serious, potentially life-threatening medical consequences.

Services for individuals with eating disorders are delivered by a broad range of providers, from family doctors, through community agencies and hospitals, to provincial tertiary care centres.

Currently, BCMHAS is working with its partner agencies to improve the coordination of eating disorders services throughout BC, to enhance access for patients and their families to the care they need. The key partners are:

Regional Health Authorities are responsible for managing the delivery of primary, secondary, and some tertiary-level services, including community-based outpatient care for adults as well as hospital-based emergency and medical care;
Ministry of Child and Family Development (MCFD) delivers most community-based care for children and adolescents and plays a key role in education and prevention;
BCMHAS, as an agency of the Provincial Health Services Authority, is responsible for ensuring that all British Columbians have equitable access to a coordinated network of high-quality provincial specialized services, and for research and knowledge exchange in the field of eating disorders.

Provincial specialized eating disorders services are provided at BC Children's Hospital, for children and adolescents, and St. Paul's Hospital (part of Providence Health Care) for adults. For more information about these services, follow the links at the top of this page.