Self-harm In Eating Disorders (SHINE) Study

SHINE (Self-Harm in Eating Disorders) is an NIHR-funded study investigating the psychological, emotional, and social factors that underlie self-harm in young people aged 16-25 with an eating disorder.

About the SHINE Study | University of Birmingham

Transcript

Hello, my name is Rosie Pendrous and I'm a Research Fellow in the Institute of Applied Health Research here at the University of Birmingham. In particular I'm working on the SHINE study which is funded by the NIHR and led by Dr Anna Lavis. The study is also in collaboration with the youth advisory group who are based in the Institute for Mental Health also at the University of Birmingham. The SHINE study aims to understand a key missing piece in the self-harm and suicide research literature which is the relationship between self-harm and eating disorders. It is known that self-harm and eating disorders commonly co-occur with research finding that about 25 to 50 of people with an eating disorder may also experience self-harm and experiencing both together can increase someone's risk of suicide.

SHINE Study

So with these statistics in mind, research is urgently needed to ensure that we better understand why self-harming eating disorders may co-occur, what the relationship between them is and what it's like to experience both so to explore these questions for the SHINE study we are recruiting in three outpatient eating disorder services in England, young people aged 16 to 25 with a diagnosis of any eating disorder and who also have self-harm thoughts and or behaviors which can be current or historical. We're using mixed methods including both ecological momentary assessment to explore how often self-harm thoughts and behaviours occur and why in real time over two weeks as well as an optional in-depth but informal interview to hear young people's stories of living with both and their perspectives on what support they would value both clinical and social support.

Outro

Recruitment is currently ongoing for SHINE and will finish at the end of November this year and then next may we hope to have our findings ready to share with you and through research we aim to create hope of recovery and support for young people. You can follow me at Rosie Pendrous, Anna Lavis or the SHINE study on twitter for all project updates. Thank you forlistening.

About the Study

Approximately 25%-55% of young people with an eating disorder also self-harm. Currently, however, there is a lack of understanding around why a young person may develop both an eating disorder and self-harm, how these impact each other, and what a young person’s specific care and support needs are. These knowledge gaps have clear implications for treatment pathways and outcomes. To date, there are no NHS services or interventions which provide much-needed specialist support for both an eating disorder and self-harm.

In the SHINE study we are recruiting young people with a diagnosis of an eating disorder and either current or previous self-harm thoughts or behaviours, from three UK-based outpatient services: (i) Forward Thinking Birmingham, Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust; (ii) Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust, and (iii) Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership Trust.

We have been working closely with the Institute for Mental Health’s Young Persons Advisory Group to design the study, explore the feasibility and acceptability of the study methods, ensure that ethical standards are met, and disseminate the findings.

This study is funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under its Research for Patient Benefit (RfPB) Programme (Grant Reference Number NIHR201108).

The study gained ethical approval from the NHS HRA West Midlands – Black Country Research Ethics Committee (number: 296032).

Team members

Dr Anna Lavis (Chief Investigator) is an Associate Professor in Medical Anthropology within the Institute for Applied Health Research at the University of Birmingham.

Dr Maria Michail (Co-Investigator) is an Associate Professor within the Institute for Mental Health at the University of Birmingham.

Dr Rosina Pendrous is a Research Fellow within the Institute of Applied Health Research at the University of Birmingham.

Mrs Christina Easter (Co-Investigator) is a Medical Statistician within the Institute of Applied Health Research at the University of Birmingham.

Mx Kalen Reid (Co-Investigator) is the study’s PPI lead.

Dr Sheryllin McNeil (Co-Investigator) is the Psychological Therapies Lead at the Specialist Eating Disorder Service, within the Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust.

Dr Helen Bould (Co-Investigator) is a Consultant Senior Lecturer in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Bristol and an Honorary Consultant in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry within the Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust.

Dr Anthony Winston (Co-Investigator) is a consultant in Eating Disorders and Medical Lead for Eating Disorders within the Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership Trust.

Publications

Lavis A, McNeil S, Bould H, et al. Self-Harm in Eating Disorders (SHINE): a mixed-methods exploratory study. BMJ Open 2022;12:e065065. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-065065

Contact us

Dr Anna Lavis: a.c.lavis@bham.ac.uk

Dr Maria Michail: m.michail@bham.ac.uk

Dr Rosina Pendrous: r.pendrous@bham.ac.uk