Ten Registered Nurses took part in the interviews. Six were
recruited from the adolescent ward and four from the general
medical ward of a children’s hospital. Three were male and
seven female. The clinical educators and nursing unit
managers of both wards assisted in recruitment by publicising
the study and identifying staff who met the inclusion criteria
(at least 2 years’ experience in caring for adolescents with
anorexia nervosa, excluding pool and agency nurses whose
experience may not have been continuous). Participants’ ages
ranged from 26 to 48 years. They had from 5 to 26 years
experience as nurses and from 2 to 6 years experience
working with adolescents with anorexia. None had had any
formal mental health training.