| Sumario: | Background: The share of consultations at district psychiatric centres is increasing. In a health-economics perspective, it is important to describe the effects of the outpatient treatment provided at such centres. Objective: The aim of the study was to map changes in symptom severity and the incidence of mental disorders in patients following treatment at a district psychiatric centre. We also wanted to assess whether the therapist's profession had an impact on these variables. Method: At Elverum-Hamar district psychiatric centre, we mapped 156 patients before therapy, and 65 patients (42 per cent) participated in a follow-up six years later. Participants reported their own symptom severity and took part in diagnostic interviews before therapy and as part of the follow-up. In separate analyses, treatment outcomes were compared for patients of psychiatric nurses (n = 31) and psychologists/psychiatrists (n = 34). Results: In the follow-up, 28 out of 65 patients (43 per cent) showed a clinically signi
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