[The role of a psychiatric nurse in the treatment of anorexia and bulimia nervosa].

BACKGROUND

An alarming number of individuals are developing eating disorders in the western world. Eating disorder is a complex compulsion to eat in a way which disturbs physical, mental and psychological health. There is no one cause of eating disorders because many things contribute to them.

AIM: The aim of this article is to clarify whether a nurse could play a role in the treatment of patients with eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia nervosa.

METHOD: After an accurate research for the world's centers that are in forefront of scientific research in eating disorders, we identified 210 potentially care centers, that we contacted via e-mail, to receive more information about their method of treatment, in particular about the nursing treatment in anorexia and bulimia nervosa.

RESULTS

We obtained three different groups of nursing treatment, that are: the role of the psychiatric nurse in the capture of the range of the patients problems; the nursing intervention in inpatient care; - the nursing intervention in outpatient care. All these groups contain many nursing practice in the treatment of anorexic and bulimic patients.

DISCUSSION: The psychiatric nurse could play an important role in the whole period of treatment in patients with eating disorders, in that the nurse deals the patient in his physical and psychological component at the same time and he represents a constant presence in the whole clinical path-way's patient.