What is Social Prescribing?
Social prescribing is a term that is used more and more within the health and social care system, but it isn’t always clear what it means.
Put simply, it is a way that GPs in primary care services can talk, think and practice when it comes to the health of the people they serve.
Social prescribing is an approach to health that considers how we might deal with a wide variety of issues that can have a big impact on our health; loneliness, problems with housing or homelessness, financial worries and unemployment all have to be addressed alongside our medical needs in order for us to be well.
It isn’t just one thing, but a way of working that can include all kinds of things, and it’s growing in importance all the time. Most of the time, it will be a GP or nurse that makes social prescribing referrals, also known as community referrals.
It could mean:
- A referral to a gym or sports club
- Being given information about a community food-growing garden
- Advice workers coming to surgeries to assist with benefits and debt issues
- A referral to a befriending service for a patient who would benefit from social contact
The success of social prescribing relies on small, local charities getting involved and working closely with GP surgeries to pick up these referrals.
Social prescribers are professionals, usually from different groups within the charity and voluntary sector, that will contact people, give information or advice and plan activities. They might be called link workers, navigators, coaches, community connectors or health and wellbeing advisors.
In a way, social prescribing is nothing new. Support workers in a range of charities have been active in their communities for many years, and social prescribing has not replaced them. People can still receive support from a wide variety of places that might organise access differently. Social prescribing offers a new way to access support, via a GP, with the NHS working alongside them and acknowledging the importance of their role in public health.
Benefits of social prescribing:
GPs and nurses work within a broader understanding of health that considers social, environmental and economic factors.
Patients are empowered to manage their conditions with a greater degree of control.
It can be more ‘person-centred,’ considering non-clinical needs and working with the patient to meet them.
There’s a lot of good work happening, but not everybody knows what services they can access in their local area, especially those who are less able to look online. Social prescribing offers an opportunity to connect people with local services and activities, as most people will visit a GP.
The issues in each area will be different. Social prescribing makes it easier for health leaders to be flexible and creative in finding solutions and target their approach when necessary e.g. by offering meal planning sessions in an area where many people struggle to eat well, or supporting pop-up clinics in areas where vaccines are a priority.
Where can I find a social prescriber?
In Lambeth, each Primary Care Network (PCN) has social prescribers. Each PCN has a link worker based in GP surgeries offering 1-1 support.
Some workers are from Age UK Lambeth, some from an organisation called Surrey Physio, and other Lambeth PCNs have employed social prescribers directly. They can help you create a personal plan to deal with longer term problems, which could include:
- Information and advice around housing and finances
- Introducing you to a new activity or local club
- Linking you in with services and organisations in your local area
- Helping you to be more active
You can access social prescribing by asking your GP (or another member of staff at the surgery) for more information and for a referral to be made on your behalf.
