Adapting the eating disorder examination questionnaire (EDE-Q) and the clinical impairment assessment (CIA) for an adult inpatient eating disorder service.

Background: The 28-item Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q) and the 16-item Clinical Impairment Assessment (CIA) are widely used for measuring eating disorder psychopathology, but they were both designed for outpatient populations. This two-stage project aimed to adapt the EDE-Q and the CIA to be applicable to an adult inpatient eating disorder service.

Method: In the first stage, feedback was sought from staff and patients at a specialist adult inpatient eating disorder service in the south of England, verbally, in writing, and during focus groups. This feedback was used to adapt the questionnaires. In the second stage, the adapted questionnaires were trialled by current patients. Qualitative data were collected via semi-structured interviews from patients who trialled the adapted questionnaires, from which themes were analysed using the Framework Method.

Results: Quantitative and qualitative feedback was provided by 11 staff members and 13 patients. This was used to develop adapted, inpatient versions of the EDE-Q (the 18-item EDE-I) and CIA (the 10-item CIA-I). During subsequent interviews (N = 9) patients were positive about the adapted measures, especially the shorter time frame and the removal and rephrasing of specific questions, to better reflect their experiences as inpatients.

Conclusion: This project offers a promising adaptation to established psychometric measures for inpatients being treated for an eating disorder. Future research may wish to establish psychometric validation of the EDE-I and CIA-I to support a more appropriate way of measuring psychopathology and progress for people receiving treatment in hospital.