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GXC 2025 Online Virtual Conference - Mental Health Without Borders

Transforming Early Intervention in Eating Disorders: MANTRA, FREED & EDIFY as Models of Global Innovation

UIrike Schmidt, OBE MD PhD FRCPsych FMedSci FAED 🇬🇧
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Description

This session explores groundbreaking clinical and research advances in eating disorder treatment, led by Professor Ulrike Schmidt. Her work has transformed early intervention and personalized care through the development of innovative models such as MANTRA (Maudsley Model of Anorexia Nervosa Treatment for Adults), FREED (First Episode Rapid Early Intervention for Eating Disorders), and EDIFY, a pioneering interdisciplinary research program reshaping how eating disorders in young people are understood and treated.

Traditional treatment for eating disorders often involves delayed intervention, fragmented services, and limited integration of neurobiological, psychological, and social perspectives. Professor Schmidt’s work addresses these gaps by developing scalable, evidence-based interventions that are developmentally sensitive and grounded in neurocognitive and relational science. MANTRA provides a personalized psychotherapy framework tailored to the thinking styles and emotional processes of individuals with anorexia. FREED, now adopted internationally, offers a rapid-access, youth-focused pathway aimed at shortening Duration of Untreated Eating Disorder (DUED), improving medical outcomes, and reducing chronicity. EDIFY expands this work by combining neuroscience, lived experience, digital health, and social science to reimagine care models for young people.

Participants will gain insights into core components, clinical outcomes, implementation strategies, and emerging research behind these approaches. The session highlights how early intervention, interdisciplinary collaboration, and patient-centered care can reduce illness duration and transform recovery trajectories on a global scale.

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Describe the core principles and therapeutic structure of MANTRA and how it differs from traditional treatment models for anorexia nervosa.

  • Explain the design and outcomes of the FREED early intervention pathway and its impact on reducing Duration of Untreated Eating Disorders (DUED).

  • Identify at least three key components of the EDIFY program that integrate neuroscience, digital innovation, and lived experience into eating disorder research and care.

  • Apply early intervention strategies from MANTRA and FREED to clinical practice with adolescents and young adults presenting with emerging eating disorders.

Educational Goal

Participants will deepen their understanding of evidence-based, early-intervention approaches for eating disorders through the study of MANTRA, FREED, and EDIFY. The session aims to enhance professional sophistication by expanding clinicians’ ability to integrate neuroscience, psychological models, and interdisciplinary collaboration into clinical practice—leading to earlier detection, more personalized care, and improved recovery outcomes in young people.

Target Audience

  • Addiction Professional
  • Counselor
  • Marriage & Family Therapist
  • Nurse
  • Physician
  • Psychologist
  • Social Worker

Presenters

UIrike Schmidt, OBE MD PhD FRCPsych FMedSci FAED 🇬🇧
UIrike Schmidt, OBE MD PhD FRCPsych FMedSci FAED, is the Professor of Eating Disorders at King’s College London and a Consultant Psychiatrist at the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. She is also an NIHR Senior Investigator. A key focus of her research is the development of brief scalable interventions. She has led the development of MANTRA, a NICE-recommended psychotherapy and of FREED, a multi-award winning early intervention programme. She has also pioneered the use of novel brain-directed treatments in eating disorders. Ulrike was a member of the NICE Eating Disorders Guidelines development group, chair of the Eating Disorders Section at the Royal College of Psychiatrists and a board member of the Academy for Eating Disorders. She has written some 500 peer-reviewed papers and many other publications.

Financially Sponsored By

  • GXC Events - The Global Exchange Conference