Primary Care Improvement - Social Prescribing

The aim of Social Prescribing is to help people to live as healthy and happy lives as possible by offering non-clinical support for a wide range of health and wellbeing related issues.

Sometimes the reasons people go to the GP are not medical, or their health issues are being made worse by other things going on in their lives. These things may be financial, or related to housing, or to do with mental wellbeing, loneliness and social isolation for example. In these situations medicine is not always the right solution. So when we talk about Social Prescribing we're describing a wide range of ways of supporting people to access services and activities that can help them to deal with this kind of thing. It's a service that provides community and other solutions to life issues and it can complement or sometimes replace the need for medical interventions. 

The service is for everyone who needs it including those who find it more difficult to access services and activities directly. For example, some patients might need support because they have complex health conditions or challenging circumstances, or because they live in a remote rural area.

Social Prescribers (sometimes called Community Link Workers) work with GP practices to help patients find and engage with the kind of information and services that will support them and enable them to make decisions about their care and support. They are non-medical practitioners who can advise about local resources, for example volunteering and employment opportunities. And they can advise on a wide range of services to help meet essential needs. Social Prescribing can improve people's health and wellbeing by helping them to access clubs, organisations and activities in their community as well as ensuring the patient's core needs are being met.

There are different arrangements in place across Tayside. But all Social Prescribers work closely with GP practices and work in partnership with Primary Care, local authorities and the third sector (including charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups). Some Social Prescribers are based in the GP practices themselves.

Click on the headings below to find out about the arrangements in your area.