American Center for Psychiatry and Neurology, Abu Dhabi, UAE
Co-eur center for eating disorders, the Netherlands
bernoumelisse@outlook.com
americancenteruae.com/clinicians/dr-bernou-melisse/
co-eur.nl/
Professional Role(s) and qualifications:
I am a licensed Clinical Psychologist in both the Netherlands and Abu Dhabi (DoH). I am Director of the Eating and Weight Disorders Department at the American Center for Psychiatry and Neurology in Abu Dhabi, where I lead the implementation of evidence-based treatments within a multidisciplinary team. I am affiliated as a researcher with Utrecht University and work with Co-eur, a specialized center for eating disorders, focusing on the development and coordination of (digital) evidence-based interventions. In addition, I serve as a board member of the Dutch Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (VGCT; Eating Disorders Section) and the Arab Eating Disorders Association (AEDA).
Training in CBT-E:
I completeed the web-based CBT-E training (CRED; University of Oxford ). In addition, I have attended multiple advanced workshops, postgraduate courses, and professional trainings focused on CBT-E for various eating disorders, delivered through international academic and clinical institutions. I am a registered CBT therapist with the Dutch Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (VGCT). Alongside my clinical training, I have developed and implemented several web-based and blended CBT-E interventions, and my PhD research focused on the efficacy, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of (digital) CBT-E for eating disorders.
Clinical Practice and Supervision:
My clinical practice focuses on the assessment and treatment of eating disorders across the lifespan, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, ARFID, and comorbid presentations. I routinely provide CBT-E in individual, and digital formats. In addition to clinical work, I am actively involved in postmaster-level education, providing CBT-E training and teaching through KING postgraduate education and the Dutch Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Therapies (VGCT). I have extensive experience in supervising psychologists and multidisciplinary teams and currently offer clinical supervision in CBT-E.
Research:
My research focuses on eating disorders and body image, with particular emphasis on epidemiology, assessment validation, comorbidity, and the efficacy, effectiveness, and cost-effectiveness of (digital) CBT-E interventions. I have led and collaborated on multiple international research projects and randomized controlled trials and have published extensively in peer-reviewed journals in the field of eating disorders. Some of the CBT-E papers:
Melisse, B., Dekker, J., Berg, E. v. d., Jonge, M. d., Peen, J., & Beurs, E. d. (2022). Comparing the effectiveness and predictors of cognitive behavioural therapy-enhanced between patients with various eating disorder diagnoses: a naturalistic study. The Cognitive Behaviour Therapist, 15. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1754470X22000174
Melisse, B., van den Berg, Jonge, M. d., Blankers, M., van Furth, E., Dekker, J., & de Beurs, E. (2023). Efficacy of Web-based Guided Self-help Cognitive Behavioral Therapy- Enhanced for Binge Eating Disorder: a Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of medical Internet research, 25, e40472. https://doi.org/10.2196/40472
Melisse, B., Van den Berg, E., & De Beurs, E. (2023). Effectiveness of Web- based Guided Self- Help Cognitive Behavioral Therapy- Enhanced for Binge- Eating Disorder: an implementation study. International Journal of eating disorders. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.24079
Melisse, B., Blankers, M., Berg, E. v. d., Jonge, M. d., Lommerse, N., van Furth, E. Dekker, J., & de Beurs, E. (2023). Economic Evaluation of Web-based Guided Self-help Cognitive Behavioral Therapy- Enhanced for Binge- Eating Disorder Compared to a Waiting-List: a Randomized Controlled Trial. International Journal of eating disorders. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.24003
Van Beers, E., Melisse, B., Poelstra, P., Lommerse, N., de Jonge, M., de Waal, M., Peen, J., de Beurs, E., & van den Berg, E. (2025). Web-Based Guided Self-Help vs Treatment as Usual for Binge-Eating Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA network
