Social prescribing needs more evidence to support its benefits before widespread rollout – new study

By Bridget Kiely, Clinical Research Fellow, RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences
Susan Smith, Professor of General Practice, Trinity College Dublin

Around one in five GP visits are for non-medical problems, such as loneliness or financial difficulty. However, these non-medical problems are known to have a big impact on patients’ health and wellbeing. GPs are aware of this and want to take a more holistic approach to care, but often are not sure how to do it. This has led to the development of “social prescribing”, where GPs “prescribe” social activities or support for people with the help of a link worker.

The link worker is someone who knows a community well,…

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