Eating disorder treatment center set for Whitefish

The Daily Inter Lake

A 24-bed nonprofit treatment facility for eating disorders is planned near North Valley Hospital in Whitefish.

The $4.6 million, 27,000-square-foot North Star Institute is expected to open in fall 2009 and is the culmination of more than two years of research, planning and development by Steve Bryson, a registered nurse and licensed clinical professional counselor with a private practice in Whitefish.

Bryson has counseled patients with eating disorders for several years. When one of his clients was gravely disabled from her eating disorder and required court-ordered residential care, Bryson said he discovered that comprehensive care for eating disorders was virtually unavailable in northwestern North America. After an exhaustive search, Bryson realized that the nearest facility was more than 600 miles away.

"In my research, I found that there are no dedicated eating disorder treatment facilities between Fargo (North Dakota) and Portland," Bryson said. "We will effectively be the only dedicated comprehensive eating disorders treatment center in northwestern North America."

The Rimrock Foundation program in Billings is an addictions treatment center that treats eating disorders but doesn't focus exclusively on such disorders.

People with eating disorders typically need several weeks to months to effectively recover, he said. They require a combination of professionals to help them recover. A successful team typically includes a counselor, a medical doctor, a nutritionist and often an exercise physiologist.

The idea of building a treatment center in Whitefish was compelling from a number of perspectives, he said. As much as 5 percent of the population suffers from eating disorders and the population of the U.S. Northwest is roughly 6 million people.

"The staggering number of individuals not served is astounding," he said.

Bryson and his partner, John Bennett, a health-care facility developer, have signed a letter of intent with North Valley Hospital for a lease/purchase agreement for land on the new campus.

In addition to the residential facility, there will be space for partial hospitalization as well as direct outpatient services. North Valley Hospital will provide necessary inpatient hospital care for medically compromised patients to stabilize them for transfer to the residential program at North Star Institute, Bryson said.

North Valley Hospital will contract with North Star Institute to provide selected services such as dietary, laboratory, laundry and maintenance.

Eating disorders are among the most difficult psychiatric disorders to treat, Bryson said. Along with the social and psychological pressures of those suffering with these problems, eating disorders are the most fatal of all psychological disabilities.

Bryson has operated a successful private practice for 20 years and has past experience in administration with mental health services, but said his lack of entrepreneurial experience prompted him to consult with North Valley Hospital administrator Craig Aasved and begin working with the hospital on the project.

North Valley Hospital included the property on which the treatment center will be built in its planned-unit development, "so some of the hoops have already been jumped through," Bryson said.

"But we are a stand-alone building and business and have approached the city and have begun the process of meeting the requirements of the planning office. We will then address the Planning Board and City Council."