Social Prescribing: What It Is and What It Can Do.

Abstract

Social prescribing is proposed as a way to address social determinates of health and improve health and well-being outcomes and increasingly, acute hospitals, secondary and specialist care services are also implementing the approach. There are many local small-scale studies that have explored the benefits of social prescribing and, more recently, larger scale evaluations have brought together evidence across different areas. These studies suggest that social prescribing is able to reach those facing inequalities and can lead to economic benefits to health services as well as social and health related outcomes for individuals. However, it is also important to consider the systems that link workers fit into and how this contributes to addressing social determinates of health.