Auckland to get eating disorders unit

Tony Ryall says the Government will increase its annual spending on eating disorder services. Photo / Getty Images

A specialist residential service for eating disorders is to be created in Auckland, the Government has confirmed.

Health Minister Tony Ryall last night announced plans for the eight-bed service, to be run jointly with a non-government organisation in a community location.

The specialist service, promised earlier this year, would provide for patients in the upper North Island. However, it will not be created until next year at the earliest.

Four beds in the Starship children's hospital would cater for children under 15 with eating disorders.

An Eating Disorders Association spokesman said it was delighted there were "finally some moves on the inpatient unit in Auckland".

"We are very pleased Mr Ryall has delivered on his promise made earlier this year," said the spokesman, who asked not to be named.

Many New Zealanders with disorders currently travel to Australia for treatment. "There are several eating-disorder patients in Sydney and we understand over the last three months there have been, on average, 10 eating-disorder patients at any time requiring hospital/inpatient treatment."

Mr Ryall said the Government would increase annual spending on eating disorder services by $6.5 million, to $17 million. The investment would also include an expansion of regional services based in Wellington and Christchurch.

The new services were expected to begin from the middle of next year, but would take some time to become fully operational, he said.

Residential services currently provided by district health boards are limited to a specialist unit at Princess Margaret Hospital in Christchurch and a community residential facility in Wellington.

Some publicly funded patients are also sent to the private Ashburn Clinic in Dunedin. Seriously underweight patients are treated in their local hospital.