It is ideal to manage young patients with eating disorders in the community whenever possible to enable patients to live a less restricted life as they navigate through recovery.

I had the wonderful opportunity to present with Dr Sarah Trobe, NEDC's National Director, and General Practitioner Dr Emma Ratray from 'Doctors in Secondary Schools' (DiSS), coordinated by The University of Melbourne, to collaborate on ways to best respond to eating disorders in the school setting.

The rates of debilitating eating disorders in children have been rising over recent decades, and sharply escalated over the pandemic. The key to driving down these concerning numbers of children falling victim in the future lies in community prevention and early intervention strategies.

I am thrilled to be involved in this national Medical Research Future Funded "ScreenED" Project, led by Dr Laura Hart and project managed by Ellie Tsiamis (pictured) from the University of Melbourne, aiming to devise a more precise and developmentally age appropriate earl detection tool for eating disorders in children under the age of 12 years.

It was exciting to receive the posters and flyers to kickstart recruitment today.

A stay in hospital over the festive season can be challenging, especially for children. That’s why Austin Gifts donated a bundle of toys and activities to the Paediatric Ward just before Christmas.

All proceeds from our gift store, Austin Gifts, are generously donated to Austin Health. Last year, Austin Gifts directed their fundraising to the Paediatric Ward, providing a range of activities for our youngest patients. Toys, crafts, educational games and more were delivered to the ward in December and happily received. ‘‘We are so glad we can support the kids staying in hospital with activities to keep them busy – after all, it is Christmas,’’ said Austin Gifts manager Desley McMullin. In addition to Austin Gifts, Hey Caddy Preston are planning to hold a community fundraising activity to supply the Paediatric Ward with outdoor equipment. Consultant Paediatrician Dr Suba Rudolph says, ‘‘These gorgeous toys not only help our young patients to stay occupied, calm and happier during often distressing and frightening periods in hospital, but they also allow the children to continue to play, which is so important for their ongoing development and emotional wellbeing given they are out of their usual social and educational settings.’’ Combining the generosity in each purchase at Austin Gifts with a grassroots community fundraiser, we have been able to provide the Paediatric Ward with a fantastic range of activities.