About NAPHA

Contact us 
E-mail: kontakt@napha.no 
Tel.: +47 48 14 54 34 

Norwegian Resource Centre for Community Mental Health, in norwegian named Nasjonalt kompetansesenter for psykisk helsearbeid (NAPHA), is a center working to strenghten and improve local mental health services all over the country of Norway, spreading knowledge and competance. 

The center is funded by the Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services. Several of the center’s assignments are issued by the Norwegian Directorate of Health. The center is organized as a department of NTNU Social Research AS. 

About 30 people work in NAPHA, in full- and part-time positions. The employees have varied backgrounds and expertise, including research, community mental health services, social services, journalism/communication, public health, administration and as service users, to name a few. 

NAPHA’s purpose and main objective

The purpose of the Norwegian Resource Centre for Community Mental Health is to run and support various projects and measures with the aim of enhancing health, quality of life and functional level for persons with mental health problems.   

The main objective NAPHA is to ensure the development and spreading of relevant and evidence-based knowledge within the field of community mental health.  

NAPHA’s prime audience and overall aim 

Our prime audience is community mental health staff, but we are also in close contact and collaboration with a vast variety of organizations and individuals related to mental health and substance abuse issues. The center has close contact and cooperation with user organizations to ensure that the user's perspective is included in knowledge development and dissemination.  

Our overall aim is to promote mental health and well-being by strengthening the community-based services. We assist professionals in attaining knowledge and methods for performing evidence-based practice. We are also involved in the implementation of public policy concerning community mental health, national strategies, clinical guidelines, etc. As a national resource center, we are involved with a broad variety of activities in every part of Norway related to issues such as housing, employment, outreach work, recovery, and rehabilitation, to name a few.  

Prioritized areas and objectives for NAPHA are: 

1. Spreading of knowledge and evidence-based practices: through our website, direct contact with professionals and users, consultation, counselling, teaching, networks
2. Contribute to the development of knowledge, including to participating and initiating research
3. Implementation of public policy

The center does not operate at a clinical level.