5 - (SYM 103) Harnessing State-wide Partnerships and Technology to Expand Access to Care for Eating Disorders

Individuals with EDs often face major barriers to treatment (e.g., financial constraints, limited access to specialty care) and as such, there is a clear need for new delivery models that can identify and help individuals with and at risk for EDs. The Missouri EDs Council (MO EDC), a part of the Missouri Department of Mental Health, was established in 2010 by law. The MO EDC has been addressing the lack of access to treatment for EDs in Missouri through the Body U Program, which provides ED screening and a suite of evidence-based digital programs for EDs prevention and treatment to adults. Body U was initially launched at public universities in Missouri, with 12 participating, and became available to all adult Missourians in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Body U is based on decades of research and is comprised of multiple evidence-based components, including online EDs screening; a digital self-help program for individuals at low risk of developing an ED; a digital self-help program for individuals at high risk of developing an ED; a coached digital program for individuals with clinical/subclinical EDs other than anorexia nervosa [AN]; and referrals to in-person services for those screening positive for AN. Since the launch of the initiative in 2013, 13,498 people have completed the Body U screen, with 41.4% (n=5,582) screening as high risk for an ED and 31.0% (n=4,182) screening positive for a clinical or subclinical ED diagnosis. In 2023, the program was expanded to include adolescents, referred to as Body U Teens, following adaptations to the digital programs to make them relevant to teens. Body U Teens is being implemented in partnership with schools and parents in MO, with school nurses in the state supporting community-clinical linkages. We will present the latest data on the reach of the Body U and Body U Teens Programs, as well as data on the impact of the coached digital ED programs for adults and teens, in terms of effects on ED behaviors and qualitative feedback. We will discuss implementation strategies utilized for each population/setting, as well as some of the challenges encountered in deploying these initiatives and strategies for overcoming them.