Federal Minister for Health and Aged Care, Mark Butler, has unveiled a groundbreaking strategy to address the growing challenge of eating disorders in Australia.
The National Eating Disorders Strategy 2023-2033 outlines a 10-year roadmap to guide policymakers, practitioners and service providers to improve the support available to individuals living with eating disorders.
APS applauds this move and is committed to continue advocating for safer and more effective healthcare for this cohort.
We are pleased to have contributed to the development and refinement of the national strategy through the workforce working group.
The prevalence of eating disorders has been on the rise globally, including in Australia. Eating disorders impose substantial human, social and economic costs, including severe mental and physical health consequences, reduced quality of life, limited social and economic participation and, in some tragic cases, death through suicide or medical complications arising from the disorder. The economic burden in Australia alone was estimated at a staggering $69.7 billion in 2012, a figure likely to have grown substantially in the last decade.
The National Eating Disorders Strategy 2023-2033 represents a vital step forward in addressing these pressing challenges. Its overarching purpose is to ensure individuals facing or at risk of eating disorders, as well as their families and communities, can access an effective, equitable and coordinated system of care.