Social Prescribing Flashcards
Define health
Health is the complete wellness of physical, mental and social wellbeing, not merely the absence of disease or infirmity
What are social determinants of health?
Conditions in which a person is born, raise, work, live and age which are shaped by distribution of money, power and resources, responsible for avoidable and unfair health inequities
Name some social determinants of health
- ethnicity
- gender
- environment
- education
- access to civil services
- poverty
- housing
- disability
- food
- peace/war
- sexuality
- addiction
- childhood
- employment
What is intersectionality
The interconnected nature of social categories such as race, class and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and independent systems of oppression, discrimination or disadvantage
What is the medical model of healthcare
- focuses on the physical and biological aspects of disease and illness and assumes that all diseases are caused by a dysfunction
- deals with the diagnosis, cure and treatment of disease
Explain the limitations of the medical model
- assumes that every medical condition is due to an internal dysfunction and not due to social determinants
- doesn’t account for “frequent fliers” within the healthcare system
- has one-dimensional targets
- treatments address one problem at a time
- patients only at receiving end of the treatment, no variety due to limited availability
- as patients are not properly engaged with medicine, compliance issues
- no preventive measures in place for mental health problems, treated when they arise
Define social prescribing
Social prescribing is a measure that links primary healthcare patients to non-medical sources of support within their local community
What are the advantages of social prescribing
- expands treatment option in primary healthcare
- takes into consideration the social determinants of health
- enhances community well-being and social inclusion
How does social prescribing complement the medical model
- Involves the patient more in their treatment plan, encouraging compliance
- people have many complex health issues, it addresses different aspects of it
- cost-effective to have group therapy
- addresses consequences as well as prevention
- societal benefits: people learn more skills
- can be tailored
- combines mental and physical well-being
Explain how social prescribing is delivered
- GP (or other health professional) refers the patient to a community program (either directly or via a link worker)
- Referral can be only line of treatment or in conjunction with an ongoing medical treatment or can be done during the waiting period for a medical treatment to begin
- a plan for social prescribing doesn’t have to be developed from scratch as usually there are organisations that offer activities that fit the framework of social prescribing
What are the disadvantages of social prescribing
- importance of pharmaceuticals can be overlooked by some patients
- only relevant when infrastructure for it is available
Identify different types of social prescribing
- Bibliotherapy
- arts on prescription
- dance recall therapy
- social inclusion prescription
- learning prescription
- PE prescription
- exercise prescription
- ecotherapy
- volunteering and community groups
Why should we do social prescribing
- increased demand for healthcare; social determinants of health are excluded from the medical model despite contributing
- universal healthcare is not a very sustainable model
- medicalising non-medical issues isn’t sustainable
Evaluate the evidence for social prescribing
no sufficient body of evidence about social prescribing to conduct a review or support wide implementation
Why should we research social prescribing
- Social prescribing relies heavily on available infrastructure
- research is required to increase implementation and provision of social prescribing to benefit community and individual well-being
