There is no such thing as an outcome meaure, only measures of symptoms or functioning that when applied on more than one occasion give an indication of improvement or relapse. Improvement in scores is often taken as evidence that a treatment is working and lack of improvement or relapse is taken as an indication that treatment is not working and might need revising. Obviously a score can worsen because, despite good treatment, the disorder tragectory is overwhelming the treatment. Even, despite good treatment, this is a call to reconsider the treatment plan.

The HoNOS is used to rate patients symptoms and functioning and is mainly used for people with mental disorders that would impair their ability to rate themselves. The K10 is a measure of psychological distress and is very useful for people with anxiety and depressive disorders. The SF12 is a measure of wellbeing or disability and is independent of diagnosis.

Two more scales, the PHQ9 for depression and the GAD7 for anxiety disorders, are coming into use. In the active learning modules for GPs in www.climategp.tv we describe and inform about the use of these scales in primary care.