Health and Happiness: How Norway Measures Well-being

Norway has just released a new way to measure health and happiness. They've combined data from two different methods to create what's called an EQ-5D-5L value set. This value set helps understand how Norwegians feel about their health. Researchers talked to a diverse group of adults in Norway to gather this information. They asked about five main areas of health: mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression. Each area has five levels, from no problems to extreme problems. The two methods used were called cTTO and DCE. cTTO stands for 'chaining time trade-off' and it's like asking people to imagine trading years of their lives for better health. DCE, or 'discrete choice experiment, ' is more like a series of choices between different health states. Combining these two methods gave a more complete picture. It's like using two different cameras to take a photo—one close-up and one from far away. Together, they show more details. This new value set can help Norway make better health decisions. It can guide where to invest in health services and how to support people's well-being. It's a step towards understanding what truly matters in health for Norwegians. But it's not just about numbers. It's about giving a voice to the people and making sure their experiences are heard. It's about turning personal feelings into data that can drive change.