SCOFF Eating Disorder Screen
SCOFF is a five-question eating-disorder screen. This page is for clinics. It is not a medical-risk assessment and not a public test.
Overview
What is the SCOFF?
SCOFF is a very brief screen used to flag possible eating-disorder concerns for further assessment. It does not measure medical instability, BMI, or compensatory behaviour in detail.
Development and clinical use
Morgan, Reid and Lacey published SCOFF as a short primary-care screen. Later papers examined different cutoffs and populations. Local protocols still determine follow-up.
- Items
- 5 questions
- Typical use
- Case finding
- Not EDE-Q
- Different instrument
- Medical risk
- Separate clinic process
- Clinical role
- Screening support
- Diagnosis
- Not established by score
Administration
A focused client experience
The person answers five questions. Positive screens require fuller eating-disorder assessment and medical/safeguarding review where relevant. This page does not collect those answers.
- One question at a time with visible progress
- Large keyboard-operable response choices
- Previous, next, and answer-review steps
- Clear confirmation that results go to the clinic
The illustration does not reproduce SCOFF questions.
Report showcase
Designed to make evidence easy to review
The downloadable synthetic example illustrates report layout using invented response patterns, without patient data or instrument questions.
- Named instrument, version, and provenance
- Item-level response pattern without source wording
- Methodology, references, and clinical boundary
- Responsible clinician review rather than automated conclusions
Clinician review required
Methodology
Understand the measure and its scoring conventions
Published yes/no scoring exists. This page does not independently verify a cutoff. Use the official wording.
References
- Original SCOFF paperMorgan JF, Reid F, Lacey JH. The SCOFF questionnaire. BMJ. 1999;319(7223):1467-1468.
Questions
What clinics ask before they evaluate the SCOFF
These answers stay inside educational catalogue scope. They do not replace official manuals or clinician judgement.
Does SCOFF diagnose an eating disorder?
No. It is a brief screen. Further assessment and medical review remain clinical.
Does a negative SCOFF mean there is no eating disorder?
No. Brief screens miss people. Clinical concern still matters.
Can I complete SCOFF here?
No. This is not a public test.
Is SCOFF enough before starting treatment?
No. It can only support further assessment. It is not a complete eating-disorder work-up.