Outcome Measurement for Norway's Mental Health Services
In 2018 Norway spent a larger share of its health budget on mental health than most OECD countries, and its national pathway asks services to evaluate treatment with a standardized tool. HiBoop gives a DPS team, a municipal service or a private practice 100+ validated scales, scored on submission and charted session by session.
A high-spending system that asks for evaluation
In the OECD's 2021 benchmark of mental health systems, Norway spent 13.5% of its total health spending on mental health in 2018. Only five OECD countries reported more than 10%: the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Norway and France.
Spending is one half of the picture. Helsedirektoratet's national pathway for adults in specialist mental health care asks services to evaluate the treatment plan regularly with the patient, at least every 12 weeks, using a standardized tool the patient can answer, and to measure at minimum symptom level, functioning and quality of life. HiBoop is built for exactly that kind of repeat measurement.
Evaluate on a schedule
Set a scale to go out before every session or every few weeks, so the 12-week evaluation is never a scramble.
The patient's own answers
Clients complete the scales themselves, by email or QR, so the evaluation starts from their account of how things are going.
Change over time
Each score sits on one chart with the ones before it, which makes a stalled treatment easier to spot and talk through.
Made for repeat measurement
The tools a service needs to evaluate treatment on a schedule, without building its own system.
Send scales at set weeks
Send the PHQ-9, GAD-7, PCL-5 or another scale before each session or at set weeks, by email or QR code.
Scored on submission
Totals and severity bands are calculated the moment the client finishes, so the result is waiting when you open the file.
Course of treatment on one chart
Intake, mid-treatment and discharge scores line up on a single timeline, ready for an evaluation conversation.
From one clinician to a whole team
Start with one clinician in private practice, or set up a municipal team or DPS unit with shared scales and role-based access.
One published price list
Care is $25 USD/month for one clinician, month to month. Team starts at $200 USD/month with unlimited clinicians. Network is custom. Published prices in US dollars.
Exports for your record
Download PDF reports or CSV whenever you need to file a result in the patient record or review a caseload.
Mental health in Norway
Research data
Each figure below links to the source it comes from.
13.5%
Norway's mental health share of all health spending in 2018; only five OECD countries reported above 10%
16 to 22%
of adults in Norway meet the criteria for a mental disorder in a 12-month period
Research from Norway
Prompt Mental Health Care (PHQ-9, GAD-7)
In a randomized trial of 681 adults at two Rask psykisk helsehjelp sites (Sandnes and Kristiansand), 58.5% of the Prompt Mental Health Care group reached reliable recovery on the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 at six months, against 31.9% under treatment as usual.
Knapstad et al., Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 2020 PMID 31794968
Session-by-session measurement
At the first 12 Prompt Mental Health Care pilot sites, where clients completed questionnaires at baseline, before each session and at the end of treatment, the multiple-imputation reliable recovery rate was 58%, with large pre-post changes in depression and anxiety.
Knapstad et al., BMC Psychiatry, 2018 PMID 30115041
PHQ-9 and GAD-7
In 831 Norwegian psychiatric outpatients assessed before treatment, the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 reached scalar invariance across gender, diagnosis and comorbidity, supporting their use as one-dimensional measures in clinical settings.
Brattmyr et al., BMC Psychiatry, 2022 PMID 35818021
PHQ-9
Among 793 Norwegian women with and without eating disorders, the Norwegian PHQ-9 showed internal consistency between .86 and .88 and acceptable convergent validity with the GAD-7.
Wisting et al., BMC Psychiatry, 2021 PMID 33402149
PCL-5
In 576 outpatients receiving exposure-based PTSD treatment across Norway, the Norwegian PCL-5 showed satisfactory internal consistency, construct validity and sensitivity to change.
Lassen et al., European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 2025 PMID 41118338
Where outcome measurement sits in Norwegian care
From a municipal low-threshold service to specialist care at a DPS, the places a measurement routine can help.
National pathways for mental health and substance use
Specialist careThe first pathways (pakkeforløp, now national pathways) came into use on 1 January 2019, each patient with a named coordinator. In the adult pathway, treatment is evaluated with the patient at least every 12 weeks, with a standardized tool that covers symptoms, functioning and quality of life.
HelsedirektoratetEvery 12 weeksStandardized toolsRask psykisk helsehjelp (Prompt Mental Health Care)
MunicipalA low-threshold municipal service for people over 16 with anxiety, mild to moderate depression, sleep problems or early substance problems, open without a GP referral and at no charge to the client. Inspired by England's IAPT, its pilot sites asked clients to complete questionnaires before each session; a national registration system is being built.
Over 16No referral neededCBTDistrict psychiatric centres (DPS)
Specialist careA DPS is the main specialist mental health service for adults in its catchment area, offering outpatient, outreach and inpatient treatment. Most people are referred by their GP, and psychologists can refer as well.
Adults 18+OutpatientReferralHelsedirektoratet
DirectorateThe Norwegian Directorate of Health writes the national pathways and guidelines, describes the Rask psykisk helsehjelp model, and publishes Normen, the sector's information security code.
PathwaysGuidelinesNormen
Care teams across Norway
A client in a fjord village answers the same scale, on the same phone browser, as one in central Oslo.
Oslo and the former Viken
Oslo, Akershus, Buskerud and Østfold | Helse Sør-Øst | Oslo University Hospital ran the Norwegian PHQ-9 study in eating disorders
Western Norway
Bergen and Stavanger | Helse Vest | home of the research group behind the Rask psykisk helsehjelp trials
Trøndelag
Trondheim and the surrounding region | Helse Midt-Norge | NTNU psychology research on the PHQ-9 and GAD-7
Northern Norway
Tromsø, Bodø and Finnmark | Helse Nord | long distances, where video sessions and between-session measures keep contact
Southern Norway
Kristiansand and Agder | Helse Sør-Øst | one of the two sites in the Rask psykisk helsehjelp randomized trial
Data sovereignty
Nearest regionsOther regionsLow CO₂ (Google)
Local hosting on request
Google Cloud has no region here yet. HiBoop is hosted in the US or Canada by default; on request, we can deploy in the nearest regions, listed below. Google Cloud locations
Google Cloud regions
- Stockholm, Sweden Low CO₂ · 100% carbon-free
europe-north2 - Hamina, Finland Low CO₂ · 98% carbon-free
europe-north1
Low CO₂ is Google's label for a region that ran on carbon-free energy at least 75% of the time in 2025. Google's figures
- Stockholm, Sweden Low CO₂ · 100% carbon-free
Why Norway clinics choose HiBoop
Why Norwegian teams choose HiBoop
- A ready routine for the national pathway's regular, standardized evaluation
- Clients answer at home; the score is on the chart before the session
- Role-based access for DPS units, municipal teams and solo practices
- Care is $25 USD/month, month to month, with no credit card to start
- Boops, our between-session check-ins, put the client's latest answers on the chart before you meet
USD pricing & support
Transparent pricing in USD with flexible payment options for clinics of every size.
CareOne clinician, month to month$25USD/monthTeamStarting price, unlimited clinicians$200USD/monthNetworkMulti-site organizationsCustomEnterprise pricing
100+ validated scales for Norway 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)
- PHQ-8 (Depression, 8-item)
- PSWQ (Worry)
Trauma
- PCL-5 (PTSD)
- ITQ (Complex PTSD)
- LEC-5 (Life Events)
- C-SSRS Screener (Suicide Risk)
Substance use
- ASSIST-3 (Substance Involvement)
- CAGE-AID (Alcohol and Drugs)
- BARC-10 (Recovery Capital)
- TAPS (Tobacco, Alcohol, Drugs)
Youth and eating
- PHQ-A (Adolescent Depression)
- SCARED (Anxiety)
- SCOFF (Eating Disorders)
- DERS-36 (Emotion Regulation)
GDPR and Normen: what they ask of your service
Norway applies the GDPR through the EEA Agreement, and the health sector adds Normen, its code of conduct for information security and data protection. Your service is responsible for its patients' health data; these are the points to check with any vendor.
What the rules expect of your service
- Treat patient health information as a special category under Article 9, and record the legal ground you rely on
- Sign a databehandleravtale (data processor agreement) with each vendor
- Document the legal mechanism if any vendor stores data outside the EEA
- Normen asks for a risk assessment and security measures scaled to the size and risk of your service
- Patients can see and correct their data; Datatilsynet supervises
Where HiBoop helps
- SOC 2 Type II certification; data encrypted in transit and at rest
- GDPR compliant; your service remains the controller and HiBoop acts as its processor
- Hosted on Google Cloud in the US or Canada, with other regions on request
- Role-based access, so clinicians see only their own clients
- PDF and CSV exports for your patient record
- HiBoop makes no Normen claim; ask for our security documentation for your own risk assessment
Resources for Norway practitioners
Billing guides, compliance documentation, and clinical practice resources.
- DepressionPHQ-9 Clinical Guide
Scoring, severity bands and reliable change for depression monitoring
- AnxietyGAD-7 Clinical Guide
Cut-offs and repeat use of the seven-item anxiety scale
- TraumaPCL-5 Clinical Guide
Tracking PTSD symptoms through trauma-focused treatment
- PracticeMeasurement-Based Care Guide
Turning repeat measurement into a routine your clients understand
Where to read Norway's pathways, rules and figures
Official bodies, clinical guidelines, and regulatory references. Norway.
- National pathway: mental disorders in adults
Helsedirektoratet
The adult pathway for specialist mental health care, including evaluation of treatment at least every 12 weeks.
- Rask psykisk helsehjelp
Helsedirektoratet
The municipal low-threshold model for anxiety, mild to moderate depression and sleep problems.
- Normen
Helsedirektoratet
The health and care sector's code of conduct for information security and data protection.
- Mental disorders among adults
Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI)
Folkehelserapporten's chapter on how common mental disorders are in Norway.
- GDPR supervision in Norway
Datatilsynet
The supervisory authority for the GDPR in Norway.
- Behandling ved distriktspsykiatrisk senter (DPS)
Oslo kommune (City of Oslo)
What a DPS offers adults, from outpatient talk therapy to outreach and inpatient care, and who can refer to one.
Crisis and urgent help lines
If someone is in immediate danger, call 112. HiBoop is not a crisis service.
Emergency
For a life-threatening emergency, call emergency services first.
Mental Helse hjelpetelefonen
Measurement-based care
…starts with what we measure, and how long.
Send your first check-in today, with your own assessments and clients. For teams, we set up your assessments and schedules with you. Prefer a guided start? You can book a walkthrough on the next page.
Start- Everything in HiBoop, by workflow, and what shipped lately.Features
- 100+ validated measures, with scoring guides and sources.Assessments
Frequently Asked Questions
Can HiBoop support the national pathway's 12-week evaluation?
It can carry the measurement part. The adult pathway asks services to evaluate treatment with the patient at least every 12 weeks, using a standardized tool that covers symptoms, functioning and quality of life. HiBoop sends and scores validated scales on the schedule you set and keeps every result on one chart. Which instruments meet your service's evaluation routine is your clinical decision; the pathway does not name specific scales.
Is HiBoop used in Rask psykisk helsehjelp?
HiBoop is not part of the national Rask psykisk helsehjelp model or its registration system. A municipal team that wants its own routine for the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 between sessions can use HiBoop for that, alongside whatever national reporting its municipality takes part in.
Where is patient data hosted, and what about the GDPR and Normen?
Patient data is stored with Google Cloud; US and Canadian regions are the default, and other regions can be arranged on request. HiBoop holds SOC 2 Type II certification, and HiBoop is GDPR compliant, acting as your processor. Your service is responsible for its patients' data under the GDPR and Normen, so check the hosting region, the processing agreement and the transfer basis in your own risk assessment. HiBoop makes no Normen claim, and we can share our security documentation.
Which scales have been studied in Norway?
Norwegian studies support the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 in psychiatric outpatients, the PHQ-9 in women with and without eating disorders, and the PCL-5 in outpatients in PTSD treatment. All three are in the HiBoop app. The Rask psykisk helsehjelp evaluations also used the PHQ-9 and GAD-7 to measure recovery. The research section on this page lists each study.
Official sources for Norway
Health authorities
Billing and payment routes
Fee codes and amounts are set by each payer and change; check the linked schedule before you bill. HiBoop does not submit claims.
Listed for reference so you can find the official source. HiBoop is not affiliated with, and is not endorsed by, any of these organizations.