THE SOCIAL PRESCRIBING NETWORK
WHAT IS SOCIAL PRESCRIBING?
Social Prescribing is a means of enabling GPs and other frontline healthcare professionals to refer patients to a link worker - to provide them with a face to face conversation during which they can learn about the possibilities and design their own personalised solutions, i.e. ‘co-produce’ their ‘social prescription’- so that people with social, emotional or practical needs are empowered to find solutions which will improve their health and wellbeing, often using services provided by the voluntary and community sector. It is an innovative and growing movement, with the potential to reduce the financial burden on the NHS and particularly on primary care.
WHAT IS THE NETWORK?
The Social Prescribing Network consists of health professionals, researchers, academics, social prescribing practitioners, representatives from the community and voluntary sector, commissioners and funders, patients and citizens. We are working together to share knowledge and best practice, to support social prescribing at a local and national levels and to inform good quality research and evaluation. Over the past year, we have worked with many different organisations to launch International Social Prescribing Day and The Social Prescribing Network Awards.
RESOURCES
We have a variety of resources and key documents to help people commissioning, running and evaluating social prescribing schemes.
Making sense of social prescribing
This document covers various aspects including:
What is social prescribing
Why do social prescribing
What do different models look like
What makes a good link worker
What makes a good referral
Governance, risk management and evaluation
A review of the evidence assessing impact of social prescribing to healthcare demand and cost implications
This piece of work has critically appraised the current data that is available on healthcare demand and social prescribing and cost implications. We hope that it will be of use to a range of stakeholders as you continue to write business cases and strategically plan to implement or scale up social prescribing.
Making a Difference
We see every challenge as an opportunity, and this initiative helps us ensure that our partners are better prepared to manage the unique situations they find themselves in. We are invested in an innovative approach that empowers communities and delivers the support they need.