Montrose Manor

Centre Description

Montrose Manor is South Africa's premier extended care retreat specialising in the treatment of eating disorders including anorexia, bulimia and compulsive over-eating.

Eating Disorder Treatment Centers
Montrose Manor the latest addition to the Montrose family, furthers the Montrose vision to become the world leader in the treatment of addictions, eating disorders and compulsive behaviours, governed by the highest standards of evidence-based practice.

Montrose Manor

Based in a comfortably appointed and spacious residence, surrounded by acres of garden, and located in the exclusive suburb of Bishopscourt, Cape Town, Montrose Manor boasts a unique combination of world-class facilities, a luxurious environment and a step-forward clinical programme which offers holistic treatment, and the opportunity to achieve life-long recovery.

The Treatment Programme

Both the clinical care and intimate environment provided by Montrose Manor ensure treatment is less institutional than the standard primary in-patient eating disorder facilities. We accommodate a maximum of eight clients, and our programme is geared towards the healthy re-integration of our clients back into community living.

Our experienced staff encourage healing through awareness; helping clients to focus on their relationship with themselves, with others, and with their environment. A mindfulness based programme such as this encourages reconnection with the core self, immeasurably increasing the client’s quality of life, and the success of their recovery.

Our highly skilled team of mental health professionals is experienced in the presentation of eating disorders as primary or secondary processes, and are trained to manage dual diagnoses or concurrent/co-morbid disorders. On admission a psychiatrist and our multi-disciplinary team evaluate all clients; thereafter a comprehensive treatment protocol is established. Each client is then assigned a counsellor who will manage their programme, seeing the client a minimum of twice weekly for individual counselling. Depending on the client’s stage of recovery i.e. stabilised eating and healthy BMI, the client will begin PHASE ONE of the programme, moving on to PHASE TWO and THREE over a period of three months or more.

Nutritional Programme

The nutritional programme at Montrose Manor incorporates the latest medical and nutritional recommendations. The meals include foods that are high in complex carbohydrates, low in fat, low in sodium, and moderate in protein. Clients are encouraged to learn to enjoy the natural flavour of nutritionally prepared foods.

Montrose Manor Dietician: Shan Biesman-Simons
The nutritional programme is designed and managed by Shan Biesman-Simons, a registered dietician. Prior to her work at Montrose, she worked as the senior dietician at Groote Schuur hospital, lectured at Florida International University in Miami and worked on numerous dietectic-related projects. Shan is the director of Nutrition and Education at the Heart and Stroke Foundation and has a private practice specialising in eating disorders and diseases of lifestyle.

The Montrose Difference

At Montrose Manor we pride ourselves in our comprehensive approach to recovery. We are not a ‘one size fits all’ facility. We design individual programmes that incorporate psychotherapeutic and behavioural methods, emotional and spiritual healing, and sustainable physical, nutritional and life-enhancing treatments.

The Residence

Montrose Manor is a turn-of-the century manor house, lying adjacent to the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, with breathtaking views of Table Mountain. A combination of elegant, designer-styled interiors and antique furnishings befit both the location and the house’s history. With careful attention paid to the finest detail, the Montrose Manor ambience ensures that long-term treatment can be undertaken within a comfortable and luxurious environment.

Admission Criteria

- Clients must be 18 years or older, and may be of either gender.
- We expect clients to have a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 16.5 or preferably higher.
- In the case of a BMI lower than 16.5 (an extra-ordinary case may be made)
a physician’s assessment and evidence of a stabilized eating routine is
required before admission will be considered.
- Clients must have done a form of primary treatment/ intervention, and
be referred by an agent or primary care treatment center, with a letter of
referral, and must, additionally, be deemed physically fit by a medical doctor.
- Blood tests, including Full Blood Count, Electrolytes, Liver Function, Urea
and Creatinine and TSH must be sent to Montrose Manor PRIOR TO ADMISSION.
- The client must agree to being transferred to a local primary care facility
should s/he lose weight or begin to purge or restrict, such that weight loss occurs.
- A minimum of two months treatment, preferably three, must be agreed to
prior to admission.
- In the event of a relapse prior to or on admission, i.e. use of alcohol, drugs
or extreme purging, clients will be referred to a medical facility to detoxify for
a minimum of 48hrs.
- All clients will be expected to complete an eating disorder history questionnaire and liaise with our London office.

Admission Process:

- The client is welcomed and oriented by the team.
- All medication is to be handed in to the nurse on duty. Only medication prescribed
by the doctor directly involved in the client’s treatment will be allowed during the
client’s stay.
- The client is then shown to her/his room where the nurse will help her/him unpack.
All belongings and bags will be searched on arrival in the presence of the client.
- A counsellor is appointed and introduced, and will consult with the client a minimum
of twice weekly for individual sessions as well as family sessions.
- An appointment to see the dietician within 24 hours is made.

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