Skip to content
NPnotes
Menu

Mental health

PHQ-9

Nine-item depression symptom screen with an item 9 safety alert.

Intended population: Adults completing a two-week depressive symptom screen.

  • Screening scores support an interview; they do not establish a diagnosis or determine treatment.
  • Assess safety directly when there is any concern; a negative screen does not exclude suicide risk.

Over the last 2 weeks…

How often have you been bothered by any of the following problems?

1. Little interest or pleasure in doing things
2. Feeling down, depressed, or hopeless
3. Trouble falling or staying asleep, or sleeping too much
4. Feeling tired or having little energy
5. Poor appetite or overeating
6. Feeling bad about yourself — or that you are a failure or have let yourself or your family down
7. Trouble concentrating on things, such as reading the newspaper or watching television
8. Moving or speaking so slowly that other people could have noticed? Or the opposite — being so fidgety or restless that you have been moving around a lot more than usual
9. Thoughts that you would be better off dead, or of hurting yourself in some way
Functional impact (not included in the total)

If you checked off any problems, how difficult have these problems made it for you to do your work, take care of things at home, or get along with other people?

Sources and scoring references

PHQ/GAD scoring manual ↗Original PHQ-9 validation ↗

Implementation references reviewed October 28, 2026. Verify applicability and unusual or treatment-changing results against the linked references and local guidance.

Medical note templatesMedical calculator examplesWorkplace access & IT information
NPnotes

Join our community

Stay connected with NPnotes

Like our Nurse Practitioner Notes Facebook Page, subscribe or follow for updates, and leave an honest review of your experience.

Visit Facebook Page

Your note stays here. Participation is optional, and NPnotes remains free.