Tools › Treatment Readiness & Level of Care Navigator
Self-Reflection Tool

Treatment Readiness & Level of Care Navigator

This isn’t a scored quiz and it won’t tell you a level of care. It’s five questions clinicians actually ask, laid out so you can think them through before you call. Only an assessment with a clinician can determine an actual level of care.

This is an educational self-reflection tool, not a diagnostic tool. It does not diagnose, score, or determine an actual level of care — it’s meant to help you organize your own thinking before a real conversation with a clinician.
If safety is a concern right now: call or text 988, or call 911 for emergencies. Don’t wait on this tool.
Safety

Are you (or is the person you’re asking about) currently safe day to day — no medical emergencies, no immediate risk to life?

If the answer is no, or you’re not sure, that’s urgent. See the safety red flags guide below or call 911 / 988 rather than continuing this reflection.

Support at home

Is there a stable home environment and at least one person who can help with meals, appointments, or just checking in?

Strong support at home can make outpatient or lower levels of care realistic. Little or no support often points toward a higher level of structure.

History

Has this been going on for weeks, months, or years? Has treatment been tried before, and if so, what happened?

A longer history or past treatment that didn’t stick usually means a more structured level of care is worth discussing, not a sign that lighter options won’t work.

Daily functioning

Is this affecting work, school, or basic daily functioning right now, or is it more contained?

When an eating disorder is disrupting daily life significantly, day treatment or residential care are often part of the conversation.

Motivation

How ready do you feel to take a real step this week — not perfectly ready, just ready enough to make one call?

You don’t need to feel 100% ready. Ambivalence is normal and treatment teams are used to working with it.

Why these five questions

These five areas — safety, support at home, history, daily functioning, and motivation — mirror what a clinician actually asks during an initial evaluation to help determine a starting level of care. They’re not scored or weighted against each other; a single “urgent” answer on safety matters more than several moderate answers elsewhere, which is why the tool flags safety concerns separately rather than folding them into an overall score like the checkbox-style tools do.

Ready to talk it through?

A brief call with our team can help match what you’re describing to an actual level of care — outpatient, day treatment, or residential — based on a real clinical conversation, not a self-quiz.
Get a consultationSee levels of care explained

Related reading

Levels of care explained Safety red flags: when it’s urgent

Frequently asked questions

Why isn’t this tool scored like the others?

Level of care depends on a clinical judgment across several factors together, not a simple point total — a scored result could actually be misleading here, so this tool is structured as a reflection guide instead.

What if my answers point in different directions — some suggest I’m doing okay, others don’t?

That’s common and still useful information — bring exactly that mixed picture to a consultation. A clinician is used to working with an unclear or inconsistent picture and can help sort out what matters most.
Educational content only, not a diagnostic tool. This tool does not diagnose an eating disorder or determine a level of care — only a licensed clinician can do that through a real evaluation.