The Government has published Fit For the Future: 10 Year Health Plan for England.
Responding to the plan, Charlotte Osborn-Forde, Chief Executive of the National Academy for Social Prescribing (NASP), said:
“We strongly support the focus of the new NHS Plan on preventing health problems and on developing neighbourhood health. The plan highlights the importance of a social prescribing approach – addressing issues like debt and employment that impact health and wellbeing, and ensuring strong connections between the health system and community-based support.
“There is clear evidence that social prescribing benefits patients and the wider health system. Specific commitments in the plan which will progress social prescribing include the adoption of new roles such as Community Health Workers, who offer holistic support and community connection, and the integration of services such as debt advice within neighbourhood health centres.
“The detail and delivery of the plan will be key, and we are working with colleagues in the Department of Health and Social Care to share what works, highlighting the valuable contribution of link workers and the voluntary, community and faith sectors, in order to inform the upcoming implementation and workforce plans.
“We are also proactively highlighting the need for sustainable long-term investment into community groups and assets which will be essential for the neighbourhood health model to thrive.”
Modern healthcare in the 21st Century
Speaking about the plan on BBC Newscast, Stephen Kinnock, Minister of State for Care, said:
“Often people just need support - social prescribing, talking therapies, this is a holistic way of treating patients. That is modern healthcare in the 21st century.
“...People have serious issues with anxiety or depression caused by social determinants, the situations they are in in their lives. Sometimes I think that does lead to just having to reach for a medical solution, when in fact what they need is social prescribing and all the other therapies and support that are not medical. I think that is the quantum leap that we need to take into a new way of seeing healthcare and understanding the holistic needs of the individual.”
There is now strong evidence for the benefits of social prescribing, including positive evaluations of the roll-out of Social Prescribing Link Workers and of the cross-Government Green Social Prescribing programme, and research showing benefits for the wider health system.
