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Social prescribing

SteveE

We are new to "social prescribing" and wonder if anyone here has experience of help from their local "social prescriber". We are expecting a call from the GP this week to try another referral (a previous one was rejected).

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Comments

L_Volunteer

Hi @SteveE

Thanks for your great question. Unfortunately, I have no direct experience with social prescribing. I am hoping someone with more experience in this area will respond to you soon. However, in the meantime, I just wanted to finish you good luck with this! Please feel free to let us know how you get on

Tori_Scope

Hi @SteveE

I don't have any personal experience of social prescribing either, but I've heard some positive things about it.

I found this page on the NHS website, which you might like to read in order to find out a little more about it.

Have you had a think about what you might like to get out of a referral, should it be successful?

androgynous

Hi @SteveE

See the link posted above by Tori_Scope for more information (for England).

I have used the Social Prescribing Service. It was an initiative supported by all the GP's in my area, during the early stages of the Pandemic and from what i remember, I was contacted by them in the first instance.

I would highly recommend using the service. My only complaint is, it is time limited like so many other services, but i am still currently using one of the services which i wouldn't have accessed without their referral, (the Social Prescriber).

SteveE

androgynous said:

Hi @SteveE

See the link posted above by Tori_Scope for more information (for England).

I have used the Social Prescribing Service. It was an initiative supported by all the GP's in my area, during the early stages of the Pandemic and from what i remember, I was contacted by them in the first instance.

I would highly recommend using the service. My only complaint is, it is time limited like so many other services, but i am still currently using one of the services which i wouldn't have accessed without their referral, (the Social Prescriber).

Thanks for this!

We had already checked out the NHS webpage so we were quite hopeful it might help.

However, we were not aware of the time limit aspect so big thanks for the alert, and we will make sure we cover that when the GP phones.

Steve

androgynous

SteveE said:

androgynous said:

Hi @SteveE

See the link posted above by Tori_Scope for more information (for England).

I have used the Social Prescribing Service. It was an initiative supported by all the GP's in my area, during the early stages of the Pandemic and from what i remember, I was contacted by them in the first instance.

I would highly recommend using the service. My only complaint is, it is time limited like so many other services, but i am still currently using one of the services which i wouldn't have accessed without their referral, (the Social Prescriber).

Thanks for this!

We had already checked out the NHS webpage so we were quite hopeful it might help.

However, we were not aware of the time limit aspect so big thanks for the alert, and we will make sure we cover that when the GP phones.

Steve

Hi @SteveE

This is a link from the main NHS site above:-

https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing/faqs/#what-is-the-social-prescribing-link-worker-role

It does say 'On average, link workers have between 6-12 contacts with a person, depending on their needs, over a three-month period' so that sounds about right.

However, you may receive more long term support from referrals made by the link worker, as i have.

Have a think about what support you are looking for but you may end up with support you hadn't considered was available.

Good luck, hope it works out

androgynous

SteveE

androgynous said:

SteveE said:

androgynous said:

Hi @SteveE

See the link posted above by Tori_Scope for more information (for England).

I have used the Social Prescribing Service. It was an initiative supported by all the GP's in my area, during the early stages of the Pandemic and from what i remember, I was contacted by them in the first instance.

I would highly recommend using the service. My only complaint is, it is time limited like so many other services, but i am still currently using one of the services which i wouldn't have accessed without their referral, (the Social Prescriber).

Thanks for this!

We had already checked out the NHS webpage so we were quite hopeful it might help.

However, we were not aware of the time limit aspect so big thanks for the alert, and we will make sure we cover that when the GP phones.

Steve

Hi @SteveE

This is a link from the main NHS site above:-

https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/social-prescribing/faqs/#what-is-the-social-prescribing-link-worker-role

It does say 'On average, link workers have between 6-12 contacts with a person, depending on their needs, over a three-month period' so that sounds about right.

However, you may receive more long term support from referrals made by the link worker, as i have.

Have a think about what support you are looking for but you may end up with support you hadn't considered was available.

Good luck, hope it works out

androgynous

androgynous

Thanks for that! We suspect this role is not quite what we were looking for, and although it might be useful for something else, we might have been misled by our GP surgery's (welcome) enthusiasm to help by referring our son to the social prescriber. A referral, made by admin, that was turned down, I might add. Maybe the GP can conjure up a more meaningful case as part of a second attempt.

Just to be clear, we are looking for a permanent healthcare person who takes proactive interest in our son's wellbeing and who is then able to refer him to other healthcare people as required. He has had such a person all his life until about ten years ago when that role was abruptly stopped and replaced by a "circle of care" - the latter was a myth as it didn't and doesn't exist.

What support do we need? Take physio as an example - our son's regular physio was stopped some years ago (unbeknown to us) and now he has to self-refer if he thinks there is something they can do for him. But he is unable to self-refer. He relies on us as there is no-one else. He simply needs regular monitoring and regular physio exercises by people who are competent and capable of the physical work involved. Maybe the social prescriber can understand this and refer him to somebody who can provide that life-long requirement. We shall see.

Anyway it is great that you have shared your experiences as it really does help focus our minds.

With best wishes

Steve

littleacorn

Have you thought about an advocate. Not sure where you live or the age of your son but it maybe worth looking into services advocates provide in your are. This maybe the same avenue your GP goes down but you may be able to hurry things up in the mean time.

SteveE

littleacorn said:

Have you thought about an advocate. Not sure where you live or the age of your son but it maybe worth looking into services advocates provide in your are. This maybe the same avenue your GP goes down but you may be able to hurry things up in the mean time.

littleacorn You are right! And we agree with your advice that an advocate can help and in this case we have been using an advocate and we are following their advice.

Steve

L_Volunteer

Hey @SteveE

Thanks for your response. I hear you have been using an advocate. I am just wondering, how have you been finding using an advocate? If there's anything at all we can do to support you further please don't hesitate to let us know

SteveE

L_Volunteer said:

Hey @SteveE

Thanks for your response. I hear you have been using an advocate. I am just wondering, how have you been finding using an advocate? If there's anything at all we can do to support you further please don't hesitate to let us know

Hi - well, your question about using an advocate is probably best dealt with in a specific thread. We'd only use an advocate to hear us out and then if possible to help us understand possible options.

But for this topic, it is this particular advocate who has advised us to pursue the coordinator role through our GP as the advocate understands our local healthcare set-up now has such a person. And that's what we did, our GP admin arranged for a referral (based on what we'd told the admin person on the phone) and it was made, not it seems, to a care coordinator as we'd understood, but to a 'social prescriber' which was a term and a service unknown to us (hence our call on this thread on this forum for more experiences). That referral was turned down. We hope to find out more this week when we have a tel chat with GP about a possible second referral. We shall see. When all that is done, we'll report back to the advocate.

Hope this helps.

Steve

L_Volunteer

Hi @SteveE

Thanks for your response. I am sorry to hear you have had such a negative experience so far. I hope you do hear more this week and I hope it goes well. Please feel free to let us know how you get on!

SteveE

Well, eventually talked to the GP. Seems that GP practice does not have a social prescriber, now. Difficult to keep up, eh! And in any case it seems that role would not provide the support we are actually looking to have reinstated. However the GP did seem to take on board what we said about how the current referral system does not really work for our son, and can lead to serious conflict when we try to follow the advice/instruction from different health professional services. We'll see if the GP comes up with, in anything. Big thanks to all for their input here.

littleacorn

Does your son have a social worker? Or does he attend any local groups or services?

androgynous

SteveE said:

Well, eventually talked to the GP. Seems that GP practice does not have a social prescriber, now. Difficult to keep up, eh! And in any case it seems that role would not provide the support we are actually looking to have reinstated. However the GP did seem to take on board what we said about how the current referral system does not really work for our son, and can lead to serious conflict when we try to follow the advice/instruction from different health professional services. We'll see if the GP comes up with, in anything. Big thanks to all for their input here.

Thanks for the update SteveE.

I know around here the Social Prescribers were brought in largely to support people at the beginning of the pandemic, particularly those who were Shielding. I hope your GP comes up with some suggestions although you could try your County Council or Local Council welfare services who could maybe refer you on? I've found the County Council good, up to a limited point. It's very difficult to access services with all the cutbacks, nowadays.

I hope you manage to find something.

androgynous

SteveE

littleacorn said:

Does your son have a social worker? Or does he attend any local groups or services?

Hi @littleacorn

Well, he is on the local authority ASC books (and has been all his life) and until recently had a named social worker. Due to cuts and lack of staff, access to a social worker is now by referral only, and if approved, then a social worker (perhaps known to us, perhaps not) will be assigned. He attends a day centre three days a week.

What we have been trying to do is to reinstate the role of a central coordinator (a named senior health professional) which had been assigned to our son since birth but was clobbered by cuts and reorganisations. That person was able to coordinate input and services from a wide range of supporting teams, and thus get the right solutions. These days, for example, we get a set of instructions from one team which conflicts with same from another team. Or the folks sorting the wheelchair replacement will not involve other teams to ensure all contributions are considered.

The recent 'social prescriber' route was suggested to us as a possible way of getting a 'care coordinator' but it has not proved so.

No worries. We will just have to bash on, put up with the nonsense, whilst trying to avoid disaster.

Steve

littleacorn

@SteveE if I was in your possition I would approach my local ward councillor and tell them what has been going on for you and explain the difficulties you are finding getting this sorted out. Another option would be to approach your MP. I have done this and it was amazing how quick I got answers. Good luck.

SteveE

littleacorn said:

@SteveE if I was in your possition I would approach my local ward councillor and tell them what has been going on for you and explain the difficulties you are finding getting this sorted out. Another option would be to approach your MP. I have done this and it was amazing how quick I got answers. Good luck.

Thanks! As you might expect, we have contacted local councillors, our MP and local healthwatch people, along with CCG, GP, ASC and others. The care system, based nowadays on referral, itself is the problem. For us, we need a change from reliance on reactive referrals, and go back to proactive monitoring and coordinated actions. It would be wonderful to hear if Scope agree with me or not. But hey this thread is about social prescribing (which I can see is a great idea for some things, albeit based, again, on referral) and I value the contributions made by others here.

Steve