Health care adviser
As a health care adviser, we are responsible for monitoring conditions that affect public health and for monitoring trends in the health and care services. We shall compare knowledge and experience in relation to health care, and shall act as the national normative body in various areas.
We are also an expert body on health matters, which anyone can turn to. In this role, we act as an independent and impartial adviser.
Implement adopted policies
When we implement adopted policies, we perform activities on behalf of the government and Parliament. This includes, for example, implementing action plans and campaigns or allocating grants and subsidies on the basis of the objectives set by Parliament.
Administrative authority
As an administrative authority, the Directorate is responsible for applying and interpreting the legal statutes and regulations we are mandated to administrate by the Ministry of Health and Care Services.
Who we serve
The Directorate of Health serves a diverse range of target groups. The most important being citizens and those who manage and direct the health service, namely the Ministry of Health and Care Services, the regional health authorities, and the offices of the county governors. We seek constructive dialogue and cooperation on key issues and problems because we believe this is conducive to the best results.
We seek to cooperate with other sectors than the health sector, because sectors such as the transport sector, education sector and environmental sector also influence the state of public health.
Cooperation with other governmental bodies such as the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the Norwegian Medicines Agency is important in ensuring that the advice we provide and measures we propose are consistent with the actions of such bodies. The Directorate operates with the ambition of influencing global health in the right direction. During strategy period 2011-2014, we will have a central position within WHO, and we will be stepping up our international commitment and cooperation in order to bring our influence to bear in key areas.