Effective Eating Disorder Treatment: What Helps, What Hurts, and When to Escalate Care
Join Recovery and Wellness Center of Eastern WA, OCD Anxiety Centers and Bellevue Psychiatry for a virtual training: Effective Eating Disorder Treatment: What Helps, What Hurts, and When to Escalate Care. We look forward to connecting!
Speaker: Marissa Parsons, DMSc, PA-C, CAQ-Pysch, CEDS-C
Hosts: Bellevue Psychiatry - https://www.bellevue-psychiatry.com/, Recovery and Wellness Center of Eastern WA - https://www.recoveryandwellness.org/ and OCD Anxiety Centers - https://www.ocdanxietycenters.com/
Training Description: Eating disorders are serious, complex illnesses that require more than diagnosis or medication management alone. Effective treatment depends on coordinated, evidence-based care that integrates medical monitoring, nutritional rehabilitation, behavioral intervention, and meaningful support systems. This session focuses on what truly moves recovery forward, with an emphasis on individualized treatment and strong multidisciplinary alignment.
Drawing from clinical leadership experience across adolescent and adult levels of care, this presentation explores the practical realities of treating eating disorders in everyday clinical settings. Participants will examine the distinct and complementary roles of medical providers, registered dietitians, and therapists; the central role of exposure in recovery; developmentally informed and neurodivergence-aware approaches; and the thoughtful use of medical data, including weight trends and vital signs. Common clinical missteps, such as over-reliance on insight or delayed escalation of care, will be addressed with practical guidance.
The session will also clarify key decision points, including when to recommend higher levels of care, when hospitalization is indicated, when to involve family or external systems of support, and when ongoing treatment may no longer be appropriate. By discussing realistic recovery timelines and strategies for supporting patients and families through non-linear progress, participants will leave with concrete tools to deliver compassionate, evidence-based, and individualized eating disorder care.
Session Objectives
By the end of this session, participants will be able to:
Describe the essential components of evidence-based, multidisciplinary eating disorder treatment and the distinct roles of medical providers, registered dietitians, and therapists.
Apply principles of individualized and developmentally informed care, including neurodivergence-aware approaches, to treatment planning and goal setting.
Identify clinical indicators that warrant escalation of care, including hospitalization, higher levels of care, family involvement, or ethical discontinuation of treatment.
Support patients and families through exposure-based recovery while setting realistic expectations for non-linear treatment timelines.
About Marisa Parson's
Education:
Doctor of Medical Science
A.T. Still University
Approach:
I have been a practicing certified physician assistant for more than 10 years. I love working with individuals with eating disorders and being part of the healing process with their relationship toward food, movement, and their body. My objective as an eating disorder professional is to help my patients mindfully nourish their bodies, move in a way they enjoy, and be fully engaged in life. I believe in listening to patients and providing compassionate care. I enjoy educating others about the positive health effects of adequate nutrition, movement, and positive coping skills.
At Recovery and Wellness Center of Eastern Washington, we work as a multidisciplinary treatment team of therapists, registered dietitians, eating disorder coaches, and medical professionals to provide comprehensive care. I also strive to collaborate with outpatient providers and connect with patients’ family and supports, who are all important allies for recovery.
I practice evidence-based medicine to provide the highest quality of care, working closely with a functional medicine physician and a certified eating disorder specialist. Individuals with eating disorders have often experienced a lack of understanding from healthcare professionals. I endeavor to build a safe medical environment and help patients advocate for themselves in other healthcare settings. I speak and educate about eating disorders to those in the medical field. I also have a special interest in caring for the neurodiverse.
Affiliations:
International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals
Academy for Eating Disorders
National Academy of Neuropsychology
American Academy of Physician Associates
Washington Academy of Physician Assistants
Certified Washington Autism Center of Excellence Provider
Publications:
Parsons, M.A. Autism diagnosis in females by eating disorder professionals. J Eat Disord 11, 73 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-023-00785-0
Parsons MA, Clemens JP. Eating disorders among bariatric surgery patients: The chicken or the egg? JAAPA. 2023 Nov 1;36(11):1-5. doi: 10.1097/01.JAA.0000979532.00697.1a. PMID: 37884050.