PIPEDA compliant, hosted in Canadian regions

Measurement-Based Care for Newfoundland and Labrador

For psychologists, social workers, counsellors and clinics from St. John's to Labrador City. Clients answer a validated scale on their own phone, you see the score when they submit it, and each person's change is charted from one session to the next, with no tablets to buy for the waiting room. Canadian customer data is hosted in Google Cloud Canada regions.

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PIPEDA compliant
Data hosted in Canada
SOC 2 Type II
Available in French
100+
validated assessments
Canada
hosting for Canadian customers
EN · FR
English and French
$35 CAD
per month

How mental health care is organized in Newfoundland and Labrador

Since April 1, 2023, NL Health Services has delivered public health care across the province, after the four regional health authorities and the Newfoundland and Labrador Centre for Health Information were merged into one organization. Five regional health councils advise it on issues in their regions.

From 2017 to 2019 the province ran the Stepped Care 2.0 e-mental health demonstration with the Mental Health Commission of Canada and Memorial University, across 15 mental health and addiction clinics and two primary care clinics. The plan was for clients to complete an outcome measure at every session, so care could be stepped up or down on current results. The final report says that rollout was delayed: clinics needed reliable Wi-Fi, iPads and support staff, privacy compliance had to be checked, and the system had to work with electronic records. It also observed that very few mental health professionals use an outcome monitoring program at all.

Over the same period, waits for mental health and addictions services fell 68 per cent between 2017 and 2018, which the report puts down to a combination of factors, including the Towards Recovery action plan and single-session walk-in care. In 2023 the province reported all 54 Towards Recovery recommendations complete. The CMHA's 2024 review adds that, according to the Association of Psychology in Newfoundland and Labrador, the approach has not shortened waits for specialized, higher-intensity treatment.

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What HiBoop Does for Newfoundland and Labrador Care Teams

  • The province's own demonstration showed what session-by-session measurement needs to work in practice. HiBoop provides the measuring; your team makes the clinical calls.

  • A Written Agreement with Your Information Manager

    Section 22 of the Personal Health Information Act requires a custodian that uses an information manager to put an agreement in writing that protects the information against unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disposition, loss or modification. HiBoop's published BAA policy sets out its standard information manager terms, backed by the security documentation on our trust page.

  • Access That Matches the Job

    Section 13 asks custodians for policies that restrict each employee, agent or contractor to the information their work requires. HiBoop assigns access by role, so reception, clinicians and supervisors each see what they need.

  • Measurement Without New Hardware

    The demonstration found that monitoring at every session meant equipping clinics with Wi-Fi, iPads and staff. HiBoop sends each scale by email link or QR code to the client's own phone, so a clinic needs a web browser, not a cart of tablets.

  • A Baseline from the First Visit

    Doorways and other single-session services see people without a wait list or intake. A brief PHQ-9 or GAD-7 at that first contact gives a starting point if the person returns or is stepped up to longer care.

  • Every Access on the Record

    Section 48 of the act recognizes a database that automatically logs who accessed health information, when, and what was or could have been viewed. HiBoop logs each view and export of client data for your review.

  • Suicide-Risk and Trauma Scales

    Alongside mood and anxiety scales, teams can send the C-SSRS Screener, the SIDAS, the PCL-5 and the PC-PTSD-5, and see the answers with the rest of the client's chart before the next contact.

Mental health in Newfoundland and Labrador

Research data

Research from Newfoundland and Labrador

  • Individual and group therapy

    In a randomized pilot at Memorial University's student counselling centre, 41 students with moderate to severe anxiety or depression symptoms received six weeks of individual or group therapy; scores fell in both groups, with no significant difference between them.

    Fawcett et al., Journal of American College Health, 2020 PMID 30849287

  • Stepped Care 2.0

    Describing Stepped Care 2.0 as implemented at three North American universities, a team led from Memorial University reports that monitoring was set up to give both provider and client feedback on progress, and that early observations suggested better outcomes and access, including the end of waitlists.

    Cornish et al., Psychological Services, 2017 PMID 29120201

  • Suicide risk

    A review of medical examiner records for every suicide death of a Newfoundland and Labrador resident from 1997 to 2016 found that rural residents accounted for 54.8% of deaths and were less likely than urban residents to have a known prior attempt, psychiatric disorder or substance use history.

    Reccord et al., Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 2021 PMID 33576277

  • Rural suicide prevention

    Twelve health care providers serving rural Newfoundland and Labrador, interviewed online, described individual, psychological, social and practical factors they link to suicide risk and needs in rural communities.

    Pritchard et al., PLOS ONE, 2024 PMID 39133696

  • PHQ-9 and GAD-7

    In a Memorial University survey of 581 seafarers who worked in Canadian waters during the pandemic, 39.4% screened positive for depression on the PHQ-9 and 31.8% for anxiety on the GAD-7, while most rated their own mental health good to excellent.

    Rojas Aldieri et al., International Maritime Health, 2026 PMID 42387957

Where Measurement Fits in Newfoundland and Labrador

  • HiBoop is independent of these bodies and programs. They are the system your clients, referrers and regulators work in.

  • The Stepped Care 2.0 Demonstration

    2017-2019

    Seventeen sites took part, and the clinical staff included social workers, psychologists, counsellors, occupational and recreational therapists, nurses and physicians. Among clients using the TAO online program, 63 of 192 showed reliable improvement in symptoms on the BHM-20 across four completions.

    Outcome monitoring17 sitese-mental health

  • Doorways and Bridge the gapp

    Province-wide

    Doorways offers a one-hour walk-in session with no assessment, triage or wait list; it had 66 locations and 43,000 visits by March 2023. Bridge the gapp, the province's online mental health and addictions resource, logged almost 350,000 sessions from March 2018.

    Single sessionWalk-inOnline supports

  • NL Health Services

    Since 2023

    One provincial health authority now covers four zones: Eastern, Central, Western and Labrador-Grenfell. Each zone has mental health promotion and addiction prevention staff who advise community groups applying for provincial grants.

    Provincial authorityFour zonesRegional health councils

  • Psychotherapy Under MCP

    Fee schedule

    The Medical Care Plan's payment schedule pays physicians for psychotherapy when the record and the diagnostic code show they set out to treat an emotional problem, with actual time noted and a 15-minute minimum. Family Medicine codes include 131 (individual), 132 (group) and 136 (family therapy).

    Physician servicesDocumented timeCodes 131, 132, 136

Care Teams from the Avalon to Labrador

  • HiBoop works in a web browser, so a St. John's group practice and a counsellor on the Labrador coast use the same check-ins. Populations are from the 2021 Census.

  • St. John's

    The capital had 110,525 residents in 2021; two of the stepped care demonstration's sites were integrated primary care clinics in the St. John's area.

  • Corner Brook

    Counted 19,333 residents in 2021, 2.4 per cent fewer than in 2016.

  • Grand Falls-Windsor and Gander

    Two central Newfoundland towns, with 13,853 and 11,880 residents in 2021.

  • Happy Valley-Goose Bay

    Home to 8,040 people in 2021; the Labrador Health Centre here ended its counselling wait list in 2018 by moving to walk-in access.

  • Labrador City

    The western Labrador town grew 2.7 per cent to 7,412 residents between 2016 and 2021.

Data sovereignty

Why Newfoundland and Labrador clinics choose HiBoop

  • What a PHIA Custodian Can Confirm

    • Canadian customer data hosted in Google Cloud Canada regions, encrypted both in transit and at rest
    • PIPEDA compliance, plus SOC 2 Type II certification
    • Each view and export of client data is logged and open to your review
    • Plans billed monthly, with prices published in one list
    • Nothing for clients to download: they answer on their own phone's browser

  • CAD pricing & support

    Transparent pricing in CAD with flexible payment options for clinics of every size.

    Care
    One clinician, month to month
    $35
    CAD/month
    Team
    Starting price, unlimited clinicians
    $280
    CAD/month
    Network
    Multi-site organizations
    Custom
    Enterprise pricing

100+ validated scales for Newfoundland and Labrador clinics

  • Validated scales grouped by what they measure, each with its scoring and source. Public programmes often call this routine outcome monitoring (ROM), or patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs): the same practice of giving a validated scale at regular points and reading the scores over time.

  • Mood and Anxiety

    • PHQ-9 (Depression)
    • GAD-7 (Anxiety)

  • Suicide Risk

    • C-SSRS Screener (Suicide Risk)
    • SIDAS (Suicidal Ideation)

  • Trauma

    • PCL-5 (PTSD)
    • PC-PTSD-5 (PTSD Screen)
    • LEC-5 (Life Events Checklist)

  • Alcohol and Drugs

    • ASSIST-3 (Substance Involvement)
    • TAPS (Tobacco, Alcohol and Drug Use)
    • CAGE-AID (Alcohol and Drug Screen)
Browse all assessments

The Personal Health Information Act and Your Practice

  • Newfoundland and Labrador's Personal Health Information Act (PHIA) applies to custodians, including NL Health Services and health care professionals when they provide care. The Information and Privacy Commissioner reviews complaints under it. The duties belong to you as custodian; HiBoop's part is to support you in carrying them out.

  • What PHIA asks of a custodian

    • Set information policies that protect confidentiality and limit each employee, agent or contractor to the information their work needs (s. 13)
    • Take reasonable steps to protect information against theft, loss and unauthorized access, copying or modification, and to transfer and dispose of records securely (s. 15)
    • Notify the client at the first reasonable opportunity if information is stolen, lost, improperly disposed of or accessed without authority, and inform the Commissioner of a material breach (s. 15)
    • Sign a written agreement with any information manager that protects the information in line with the act (s. 22)
    • Use and disclose only the minimum amount of information the purpose needs (ss. 33 and 49)

  • How HiBoop supports you

    • Our BAA policy, which publishes our standard information manager terms, and the trust page that documents the safeguards behind them
    • Hosting in Google Cloud Canada regions for Canadian customers, with encryption in transit and at rest
    • Role-based access, and a log of each view and export that helps you trace what happened after an incident
    • Only the scales you choose to send, so collection stays with what care needs
    • CSV or PDF export of a client's score history when they ask for their information

  • Preparing an information manager agreement?

    Our trust page details hosting, encryption, access controls and our SOC 2 Type II report. Contact us and we will walk through the agreement and any questions your privacy lead has.

    Open the trust page

Grants & funding for Newfoundland and Labrador mental health clinics

Funding Guide

  • Public and private funding programs that support measurement-based care implementation.

  • Canada Health Infoway

    Connected Care Innovation Grant

    Tech eligible

    Canada Health Infoway’s Connected Care Innovation Grant provides up to $40K per award to health organizations adopting digital tools — including outcome measurement platforms, electronic records, and patient engagement solutions. With 18 awards per cycle, it’s one of the most accessible Infoway programs for smaller mental health practices.

    Up to $40KLearn more

  • Health Canada

    Working Together to Improve Health Care — Digital Health Stream

    Tech eligible

    Canada committed $25B over 10 years in bilateral agreements with provinces with digital health as a core priority. Each province has discretion over how funds flow; some channel them directly to practices through digital health transformation programs.

    Varies by provinceLearn more

  • Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC)

    Mental Health Promotion Innovation Fund

    Tech eligible

    Supports proactive mental health promotion strategies, including digital and technology-enabled interventions. Organizations delivering community-based mental health programs can include measurement technology in their proposals.

    $50K–$1MLearn more

  • Canadian Institutes of Health Research

    CIHR — Health Research Operating Grants

    Tech eligible

    CIHR funds health research including implementation science, digital health, and measurement-based care studies. Practices partnering with universities for MBC research or e-mental health implementation can access significant funding.

    $100K–$1M+Learn more

  • Indigenous Services Canada (ISC)

    First Nations & Inuit Health Branch - Mental Wellness

    Tech eligible

    Indigenous Services Canada’s FNIHB funds community-based mental wellness programs for First Nations and Inuit communities, including technology for culturally adapted outcome measurement, digital mental health tools, and telemental health infrastructure. Organizations serving Indigenous communities should contact their ISC regional office for community-specific funding streams.

    Community-based allocationsLearn more

  • Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE)

    Women’s Program - Gender-Based Mental Health

    Tech eligible

    Women and Gender Equality Canada’s Women’s Program funds projects addressing systemic barriers in women’s mental health, including technology-enabled access for underserved women. Digital mental health tools and outcome measurement platforms that improve access for women facing barriers are explicitly eligible uses.

    $200K–$1MLearn more
View all grants & funding

Resources for Newfoundland and Labrador practitioners

Newfoundland and Labrador Law, Programs and Payment Resources

Latest in mental health in Canada

Crisis and urgent help lines

More crisis lines

Measurement-based care

…starts with what we measure, and how long.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Does HiBoop meet PHIA for our clinic?

    PHIA's duties rest with the custodian, so the useful question is whether HiBoop helps you meet them. It does so with published information manager terms for your section 22 agreement, documented safeguards, access by role and a log of every view and export. The act also says that a supplier whose goods or services let a custodian handle health information electronically must comply with it (s. 14(4)); ask us for our terms and security documentation.

  • Who exercises a young client's privacy rights?

    PHIA sets no age. A parent or guardian exercises a minor's rights under the act only where, in the custodian's opinion, the minor does not understand the nature of the right and the consequences of exercising it (s. 7(d)). Otherwise the rights stay with the young person. For advance health care directives, the Advance Health Care Directives Act presumes that a person aged 16 or older is competent to make health care decisions and that a younger person is not, unless there is evidence otherwise (s. 7).

  • Can family physicians bill MCP for psychotherapy?

    Yes. The payment schedule covers psychotherapy by physicians when the record and diagnostic code show the treatment of an emotional problem and the actual time is noted, with a 15-minute minimum. Family Medicine codes include 131 for individual, 132 for group and 136 for family therapy, and family medicine counselling (129) is capped at 200 units a year per physician.

  • How does HiBoop work alongside Doorways and stepped care?

    Single-session and walk-in services see people without intake, and stepped care moves them between levels of support. A short scale at each contact, answered on the client's own phone, gives every clinician on the path the same record of change.

Official sources for Newfoundland and Labrador

  • Health authorities

    1. 1.NL Health Services · health authority

    Billing and payment routes

    1. 1.Indigenous Services Canada: NIHB mental health counselling · public program
    2. 2.Veterans Affairs Canada: mental health services · public program
    3. 3.IRCC: Interim Federal Health Program · public program

    Fee codes and amounts are set by each payer and change; check the linked schedule before you bill. HiBoop does not submit claims.

    Regulators and licensing

    1. 1.College of Physicians and Surgeons of NL · physicians
    2. 2.Newfoundland and Labrador Psychology Board · psychologists
    3. 3.NL College of Social Workers · social workers
    4. 4.Federation of Medical Regulatory Authorities of Canada (FMRAC) · physicians
    5. 5.Association of Canadian Psychology Regulatory Organizations (ACPRO) · psychologists
    6. 6.Canadian Council of Social Work Regulators · social workers

    Data and statistics

    1. 1.Statistics Canada: Mental Health and Access to Care Survey, 2022
    2. 2.Public Health Agency of Canada: Health Infobase
    3. 3.CIHI: Mental health and substance use
    4. 4.CIHI: National Physician Database

    Listed for reference so you can find the official source. HiBoop is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, any of these organizations.