How we measure progress at TherapyHelps
Mental health progress is personal. No single score, questionnaire, or number can describe someone's full experience of therapy.
At TherapyHelps, outcome measurement is used to help understand change over time and improve the quality of care. It is not used to promise that every person will achieve the same result.
Where appropriate, clients may complete established self-report measures such as the PHQ-9, commonly used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms, and the GAD-7, commonly used to assess anxiety symptoms.
These measures provide one structured way of looking at progress alongside conversations with the therapist, the client's goals, day-to-day functioning, and other relevant clinical information.
What do PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores tell us?
The PHQ-9 and GAD-7 are brief, validated self-report questionnaires used in healthcare and research. They can help identify changes in reported symptoms over time.
A lower score at a later assessment may indicate that symptoms have reduced. However, questionnaire scores should always be interpreted in context. They do not tell us everything about a person's mental health, and they are not a replacement for professional assessment, clinical judgment, or a conversation about how someone is actually feeling.
How TherapyHelps evaluates outcomes
When TherapyHelps publishes aggregate outcome information, the aim is to answer a simple question: What changes were observed among clients who met the criteria for the reporting period?
An approved reporting methodology should clearly document:
- the dates covered by the reporting period and when the data was last updated;
- which clients were eligible for inclusion;
- the baseline and follow-up assessments and session thresholds required;
- how improvement, PHQ-9 and GAD-7 changes, and session completion were calculated;
- how missing follow-up assessments and exclusions were handled; and
- who reviewed and approved the methodology and results.
We believe these details matter because a percentage without its methodology can easily be misunderstood.
What does “clinically significant improvement” mean?
When this term is used in TherapyHelps reporting, its definition must be specified for the relevant reporting period. We do not treat a change in questionnaire score as automatically equivalent to recovery, successful treatment, or a clinical diagnosis.
The calculation method, assessment requirements, eligible population, and reporting period should accompany any approved public outcome figure so readers can understand what the number actually represents.
Why we don't promise therapy outcomes
Therapy does not affect every person in the same way. Progress can depend on many factors, including the concerns someone is experiencing, their goals, the severity and duration of symptoms, the therapeutic relationship, attendance and engagement, changes in personal circumstances, and other forms of care or support.
For that reason, group-level results should never be interpreted as a prediction of what will happen for one individual. Published TherapyHelps outcomes describe observations from an eligible group during a defined period. They are not a guarantee of treatment effectiveness or an individual result.
How outcome information is reviewed
Before an outcome statistic is presented publicly, the reporting period, eligibility criteria, calculation method, and supporting records should be reviewed by the appropriate clinical and data owners.
If a public figure cannot be adequately substantiated, our approach is to remove it, narrow the claim, or withhold it until the supporting methodology has been verified. This is part of our commitment to making outcome information understandable rather than simply presenting numbers without context.
Privacy and outcome reporting
Outcome reporting should use aggregated or appropriately anonymised information rather than exposing an individual's therapy responses publicly. How TherapyHelps collects, uses, stores, and protects personal information is described in our Privacy Policy.
Understanding your own progress
Questionnaire scores are only one part of understanding whether therapy is helping.
Progress may also involve changes that are harder to capture in a number, such as:
- managing difficult emotions more effectively;
- understanding patterns in thoughts or behaviour;
- improving relationships or communication;
- functioning better at work, school, or home;
- developing healthier coping strategies; or
- feeling more able to make decisions and work towards personal goals.
If you're using TherapyHelps, you can discuss your goals, progress, concerns, and assessment results directly with your therapist.
Our commitment to transparent reporting
We want people using TherapyHelps to understand not only what an outcome number says, but also where it came from, how it was calculated, and what its limitations are.
As our outcome reporting develops, this page is intended to provide the methodology behind approved public outcome figures, including reporting periods, eligibility requirements, calculations, exclusions, data handling, and limitations.
For information about how professionals on TherapyHelps are reviewed, see How We Verify Professionals. For questions about this methodology or a published TherapyHelps outcome, contact our support team.
Important: Outcome measures and information on this page are not a diagnosis, medical advice, or a substitute for assessment by a qualified healthcare professional. TherapyHelps is a scheduled mental health service and is not intended for emergency or crisis monitoring.