New facility for eating disorder recovery, treatment opens in Calgary

A new treatment centre for young people struggling with eating disorders has officially opened its doors in Calgary.

The EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre, located in northeast Calgary, is for people aged 12 to 24 with complex eating disorders who have been referred by a physician or nurse practitioner.

It's the first facility of its kind in Alberta, and was developed as a partnership between the Edgewood Health Network (EHN), Recovery Alberta, Silver Linings Foundation and the provincial government. 

The facility has admitted 18 clients since the spring of 2024, when it launched, with additional referrals being triaged now, according to the province. 

Cendrine Tremblay is the board chair and co-founder of the Silver Linings Foundation, a charitable organization dedicated to eating disorder awareness and education. 

Tremblay says her teenage daughter struggled with an eating disorder, often repeating a cycle of ending up in the hospital, getting better and heading home — only to end up returning to the hospital.

"Although she got excellent … acute care when she needed hospitalization, when she was no longer sick enough to be in hospital, she would be discharged," said Tremblay.

"She would just kind of start dwindling back down and end up in the hospital again. So there was a clear need for something in between intensive care and hospital and sort of outpatient care, which is kind of seeing your dietitian and your therapist once a week."

The experience is what Tremblay says prompted her to start the Silver Linings Foundation, with the eventual goal of opening a community-based residential treatment centre in Calgary. 

Now, 10 years later, she's raised $4 million to buy the building in northeast Calgary that is now the EHN Sandstone Recovery Centre.

The centre offers 24/7 care with multidisciplinary teams of specialists such as therapists, doctors and dietitians. 

Tremblay says this long-term care approach is critical for recovery, as eating disorders are illnesses that impact people both mentally and physically. 

"There's a lot of change required and it doesn't happen overnight," she said.

"[My daughter] needed this type of care for three months, twice, in order to be able to shift and really engage in recovery. And so this is now available for families and young people struggling with an eating disorder."

Free treatment for up to 52 patients a year

The Alberta government and Recovery Alberta have committed to providing $10 million over three years, from 2023 to 2026, to cover the costs associated with care. The centre can provide up to 52 youth and young adults with free-of-charge treatment every year.

Tremblay believes the best part of the fully funded recovery centre is that there's no cost to families for the services provided.

Christina Basedow, COO of EHN, says the average length of a stay ranges from one to four months, and the facility can house 12 people at once. 

"The largest thing that we want to offer people is hope," said Basedow.

"Especially in this case, with the age range of 12 to 24, hope for their families that they can find recovery … and that they are able to return and engage in normal healthy life post their treatment."

Basedow believes the new centre offers an alternative form of treatment. She says not all eating disorder treatment has to take place in a hospital.

"It can be in a really comfortable home-like setting where the patients can feel comfortable and cared for."