Social prescribing

Social prescribing sounds ominous, like social engineering. It will be interesting to see just how it helps people especially people who need the help most.

The fundamental problem is that the social prescribers rely on there being resources to signpost people to for support and with so much investment going to fund social prescribing rather than support services the voluntary sector don’t have capacity to meet the increased demand on their services

As always you are over-complicating and over-engineering something so making it admin heavy.  Yes social prescribing is vitally important and yes eventually it can be specially trained for (a bit like a Citizens Advice advisor) but you can already use your GP doctors and nurses. At our practice in W4 we have a therapeutic garden created with the support of the practice patient's group, the doctors can issue a "prescription" and a follow-up appointment (so people are encouraged to "buy in" to the "treatment".  Patients benefit from activity, growing vegetables and fruit, sociability... Early days but we already have one good case study. 

So gather together a directory of all the local resources no more than a 20-minute bus ride away, evaluate each one for what it offers (physical, mental, social, diet) and how well it offers these to different sorts of people (age-range/education/ interests). This could be done by the Locality Patient Groups in each CCG.These are an under-used force. They know their patients. Then you just need evaluation of patient needs and a hub (possibly/eventually digital) matching them to somewhere they'll fit in (SO IMPORTANT) and that's easy to get to. 

Social Prescribing is all about improved quality of life, that leads to better health. 

No I haven't heard of it- in theory it may seem a good idea but in reality I have my doubts.

It is a very good idea. I do not need it at pesent but there have been times when it would have helped.

I wonder how useful this is for those who are not already doing some of these things. Loneliness and isolation might make someone less able to do something different, or there may be issues with disability. I hope that social prescribing considers some of these issues, or maybe even helps to facilitate uptake.

I had not heard of ‘social prescribing’.

Where is the funding going to come from to support GPS, health professionals, social services & local Councils in promoting & supporting the service?

I live in an inner London borough, Lambeth: great transport links & a wealth of local organisations offering a variety of opportunities to take up new interests & meet people. Besides the local organisations, we have libraries, parks, local markets, festivals & events.

Our biggest ‘social’ battle has been with the Council itself, which is busy selling off or closing 3 of our key locations for social interaction: libraries, parks and community centres. In my opinion, these public spaces should remain ‘free at point of delivery’ just like the NHS itself. If ‘social prescribing’ is seen as an essential adjunct to the NHS - and a means of reducing the strain on GPs & the NHS drugs bill through less surgery visits - then the GOVERNMENT needs to re-think it’s policy of pushing off libraries, parks & community centres onto the private sector and/or local communities.

Public libraries were set up under a former government initiative, to act as ‘village halls’ where you went to plug into the range of services that ‘social prescribing’ seems to want to support. So why not just keep public libraries open....? And the parks for activity. And the community centres to meet the community.

Not rocket science is it?

It is a sad indictment of today that so many people are unable to link themselves into community groups that surround them. 

I spend a long time adding my 'involved input' - I then pressed 'add comment', and nothing has appeared. Really annoying. Or, is my

input being monitored for 'troll stuff' first? 

Never heard of it but in truth is it not just a new name for an old idea? It's hardly ground breaking to link health to activity, whether physical or social. Doesn't mean I think there's anything wrong with the new name, which might lend a bit of credibility and encourage professionals to consider it as an alternative or adjunct to other remedies.

Not clear how you generate either supply or demand however, given that both the NHS and local authorities are already flat broke and getting more so every year!

Like others here I was not aware of 'social prescribing'. After viewing the accompanying video one notes a useful service is on offer

for older citizens that encourages 'a socialising health regime' for those, perhaps, more lonely in their lives needing to get out and about.

Something I have noticed, that might be considered within the health and fitness area of the social proscribing scheme, is to have more

outdoor accessible 'fitness spaces' where all ages are able to do pull-ups, lift weights (for legs and arms), stretch-springs, etc. all of which

outdoor 'frames' and other 'fitness gadgets' might encourage physical fitness, and where 'outdoor physical fitness areas' particularly have 

'frames', etc. geared to the older citizen to operate without undue 'stress'. There are plenty of urban and municipal 'play areas' for children.

There could equally be far more 'play/physical fitness areas' for adults. Recently, I passed an artificial, round, conical hill that must have been 

constructed with waste earth and rubble that was beautifully landscaped and turfed over. The 'hill' or 'mound' had built into it a steepish  spiral 

walking path going around the mound from bottom to top and down again. People used this 'hill' for the stiff exercise required in treading the

steep path up and down again. Large park spaces such as Peckham Rye Park might sport such an 'exercise (artificia) hill' as might any other

large park able to accommodate this novel feature made of waste municipal soil, etc.