Plenaries​

Plenary Session: Chasing Beauty - How Cultural Obsession with Appearance has Increased the Desire for Cosmetic Procedures and What this Means for Clinicians
Presenters: Dr Amira Sanki, Dr Toni Pikoos & Dr Andrea Phillipou
Chair: Veya Seekis
How are body image issues addressed by plastic or cosmetic surgeons? - Dr Amira Sanki

Dr Sanki will discuss the effects of social media and the unregulated cosmetic surgery industry on body image and demands for plastic surgery as well as the new reforms issued by the Medical Board of Australia and AHPRA regarding psychological testing for all cosmetic surgery clients. She will give insight into how plastic surgeons can screen and sensitively manage unrealistic expectations presented by patients or patients with suspected body image problems.
Amira is is a specialist plastic surgeon working in Kogarah, NSW. She is Vice President and Chair of Education of the Australasian Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons. This role has allowed her to improve the consultation techniques of aesthetic surgeons and nurses to help patients with unrealistic expectations or undiagnosed body image issues. She has been instrumental in ASAPS media and lobbying campaign for the public to “know the difference” between qualified surgeons and cosmetic doctors.  Amira has presented locally and internationally at plastic surgery meetings on the topics of aesthetic and reconstructive plastic surgery.
Body Image Disorders and Appearance Altering Procedures: Is it a No-Go? - Dr Toni Pikoos

Toni will discuss the research regarding the outcomes of cosmetic procedures for people with body image concerns, and present the management of clinical cases where clients have been requesting appearance altering procedures. Toni will also delve into how to navigate client assessment and discussions where there may be comorbid body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) and eating disorders, or where an eating disorder has developed as a secondary presentation. Finally, she will offer some practical guidance on how mental health professionals may evaluate their patients’ suitability for cosmetic treatment. 
Toni (she/her) is a clinical psychologist and postdoctoral researcher, with a special interest in Body Dysmorphic Disorder (BDD) and the psychology of cosmetic surgery. Toni’s research centres around identifying the motivations, expectations, and outcomes of people seeking non-surgical and surgical cosmetic procedures, particularly those experiencing mental health concerns. Toni is also the Co-Founder of ReadyMind, an organisation which develops screening, training and consultation tools for cosmetic practitioners to better understand and assess the emotional needs of their patients. She was recently a consultant for the AHPRA review into patient safety in the cosmetic industry, and successfully advocated for new guidelines around mandatory psychological screening. In addition,
Distinguishing Between Body Dysmorphic Disorder and Eating Disorders - A/Prof Andrea Phillipou

In this presentation, Andrea will focus on the overlap between body dysmorphic disorder and eating disorders. The research evidence in relation to the prevalence of co-occurring eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder will be presented, along with key similarities and differences in symptom presentations. A key focus will be on how to distinguish between the body dysmorphia that is often present in people with eating disorders and body dysmorphic disorder. 
Andrea ​is an Associate Professor and Principal Research Fellow in Eating Disorders at Orygen and The Centre for Youth Mental Health at The University of Melbourne. She is the Head of Eating Disorders Research and leads the Scientific Work in Anorexia Nervosa & Other Eating Disorders (SWAN) Research Group. Andrea’s work uses various neuro-bio-psycho-social methods and is focused predominantly on three interrelated streams: 1- Understanding the factors and mechanisms involved in the development and maintenance of eating disorders, 2- Developing tools (e.g. biomarkers) that can be used for more accurate diagnosis, early intervention and prevention of eating disorders, and 3- Developing more effective interventions and treatments, and improving clinical services and support programs for people with eating disorders (and their supports) across the continuum of care.

Plenary Session: Mind the Gap - Looking Beyond Standard Treatment Interventions. Filling the Gaps in Approaches That Meet the Needs of Clients and Not Services.
Presenters: Belinda Caldwell, A/Prof Sarah Maguire & A/Prof Warren Ward
Chair: Kim Hurst
Doing Things Differently: Developing Inclusive Research Practices for Impact and Innovation - A/Prof Sarah Maguire

A/Prof Maguire will overview the strategies and ambitions of the national centre for eating disorder research and translation which has embarked on a full co-production agenda in partnership with lived and living experience in research and all its activities. In particular, the centre’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander programme will be overviewed as well as processes for the funding of research resulting from collaborative ideation and design. Other national and international initiatives developing modern research practices and approaches will be discussed. 
Sarah (BScPsych Hons, MA, DCP, PhD) is a clinical psychologist, researcher, educator, and policymaker with 20 years’ of experience in the field of eating disorders. A/Professor Maguire has worked in hospital and community settings, supervised clinical teams and trainees, and is a specialist clinical trainer and board-approved supervisor. She was awarded her PhD in 2009, received the AH Martin Prize for outstanding doctoral student during her tenure, and completed her post-doctoral training at the University of Chicago. She is a senior advisor to the NSW Ministry of Health and her institute leads the implementation of NSW Health Policy as it relates to eating disorders across the state including large-scale health system reform under the NSW Service Plan for Eating Disorders 2021-2025. She has sat on national level committees for health service reform including the Medicare working group for eating disorders. At the InsideOut Institute, she leads a research team with a broad research agenda, including biological, health systems, health economics, prevention, public health promotion, clinical intervention and translational research. ​
Creating Safety: Transforming the Culture of Inpatient and Residential Settings - A/Prof Warren Ward

A/Prof Ward will draw on his recent experience of innovative inpatient and residential settings to describe how we can create environments and programs in which we would be happy for ourselves or our loved ones to be treated (the best measure of quality). Topics covered include harnessing a large lived experience workforce, home-like environments, milieu and therapeutic community, equine therapy, yoga, permaculture, delicious food, kindness and respect, non-weight goals, stigma-free settings, and the importance of narrative as a healing agent.
​Associate Professor Warren Ward is Director of the Ramsay Clinic New Farm Eating Disorders Program. Until recently, he was the inaugural Medical Director of Wandi Nerida, Australia’s first residential program for eating disorders. For twenty years he led QuEDS (the Queensland Eating Disorders Service), which provided statewide treatment, training and consultation services. He was a co-author of the RANZCP Clinical Practice Guidelines for Eating Disorders, and in 2017 he received the ANZAED Distinguished Achievement Award for his contributions to the field. In 2018 he was made a Fellow of the Academy for Eating Disorders. He has published more than 30 articles and 2 book chapters on eating disorders. He also writes on philosophy and cultural history, and in 2022 his first book Lovers of Philosophy: How the Intimate Lives of Seven Philosophers Shaped Modern Thought became a number one bestseller on Amazon’s philosophy list. In early 2024, his second book, Renourish: How to Recover From an Eating Disorder, co-authored with Lexi Crouch, will be released by Pan Macmillan.
COVID demand and investment driving innovation to meet unmet need in Victoria
- Belinda Caldwell

Ms Belinda Caldwell (Chief Executive Officer, Eating Disorders Victoria; EDV) will discuss how high demand combined with rapid uplift in government investment over COVID, in the consumer/carer led support services organisations, resulted in development of new programs and services at Eating Disorders Victoria (EDV). EDV implemented a range of new services targeting key pain points which were either not usually served by the treatment sector or being created by a treatment system being overwhelmed during COVID. Long standing pre-COVID gaps in the system and systemic underinvestment were amplified and, as a result, the new services became core services. Lived experience forms and leads all of our services at EDV and feedback is solicited from the service users/participants for every engagement. To effectively address gaps in support services for those impacted by eating disorders, applying the lived experience lens to all facets of program conception, design and delivery is critical.
Belinda brings to her role as CEO of EDV, a lived experience of caring for her daughter with anorexia nervosa and professional experience in health policy, program management and NFP management.Since joining EDV in 2019, Belinda has led a significant expansion in services and support for Victorians impacted by eating disorders, with EDV now providing a wide ranging suite of lived experience led and delivered programs. Prior to joining EDV in 2019, Belinda was working at the Victorian Centre of Excellence in Eating Disorders as a Carer Consultant and Project Manager, developing new strategies and resources for effecting greater and more effective carer inclusion in ED treatment models. And before that, Belinda’s role as CEO of Australian Practice Nurses Association was driven by the goal of improving health outcomes for primary care consumers through access to a better care nurses in general practice medical centres. Belinda was a founding board member and Vice-Chair of Eating Disorders Families Australia until 2019. Belinda was also Vice-Chair of the global not for profit Families Empowered and Supporting Treatment of Eating Disorders (FEAST).