ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2018
Delivering a primary care-based social prescribing initiative: a qualitative study of the benefits and challenges.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
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Who cites it
46 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 99 citations in OpenAlex.
- Experiences of Non-Pharmaceutical Primary Care Interventions for Common Mental Health Disorders in Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Groups: A Systematic Review of Qualitative Studies.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Pooled it
- Effectiveness of Community-Links Practitioners in Areas of High Socioeconomic Deprivation.Annals of family medicine · 2019Trial
- The influence of community engagement on stakeholder perspectives in cross-sector integrated care: an integrative review.BMC health services research · 2026Review
- Harms and Negative or Unintended Consequences of Social Prescribing: A Scoping Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Models, implementation, and reported outcomes of social prescribing interventions: a scoping review.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
- Co-designing social prescribing pathways: guidance on the use of deliberative dialogues for inclusive implementation.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Exploring contextual barriers and enablers for the potential involvement of voluntary sports clubs in social prescribing: a qualitative case study in Denmark.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Comparative Analysis of Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes Registrations and Risk Factor Correlations in the UK (2022-24).Cureus · 2025Article
- Addressing the inverse care law in Scottish general practice: systematic scoping review.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025Article
- Experiences of integrating social prescribing link workers into primary care in England - bolting on, fitting in, or belonging: a realist evaluation.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2025Article
- Barriers and enablers to pharmacist involvement in social prescribing: a protocol for a systematic review of qualitative studies.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Third sector perspectives on community link worker referrals in social prescribing: a realist analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Understanding how intermediaries connect adults to community-based physical activity: A qualitative study.PloS one · 2025Article
- Community pharmacist involvement in social prescribing for mental health: a qualitative study.Primary health care research & development · 2024Article
- Understanding How, Why and for Whom Link Work Interventions Promote Access in Community Healthcare Settings in the United Kingdom: A Realist Review.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2024Review
- A Qualitative Exploration of the Role of Culturally Relevant Social Prescribing in Supporting Pakistani Carers Living in the UK.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2024Article
- A meta-ethnography of the factors that shape link workers' experiences of social prescribing.BMC medicine · 2024Article
- Stakeholder views on addressing challenges to the implementation of social prescribing in the United Kingdom.Frontiers in health services · 2024Article
- Implementation and impact of a social prescribing intervention: an ethnographic exploration.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2023Article
- Models of social prescribing to address non-medical needs in adults: a scoping review.BMC health services research · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundSocial prescribing is a collaborative approach to improve inter-sectoral working between primary health care and community organisations. The Links Worker Programme (LWP) is a social prescribing initiative in areas of high deprivation in Glasgow, Scotland, that is designed to mitigate the negative impacts of the social determinants of health.
aimTo investigate issues relevant to implementing a social prescribing programme to improve inter-sectoral working to achieve public health goals. DESIGN AND
settingQualitative interview study with community organisation representatives and community links practitioners (CLPs) in LWP areas.
methodAudiorecordings of semi-structured interviews with 30 community organisation representatives and six CLPs were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.
resultsParticipants identified some benefits of collaborative working, particularly the CLPs' ability to act as a case manager for patients, and their position in GP practices, which operated as a bridge between organisations. However, benefits were seen to flow from new relationships between individuals in community organisations and CLPs, rather than more generally with the practice as a whole. Challenges to the LWP were related to capacity and funding for community organisations in the context of austerity. The capacity of CLPs was also an issue given that their role involved time-consuming, intensive case management.
conclusionAlthough the LWP appears to be a fruitful approach to collaborative case management, integration initiatives such as social prescribing cannot be seen as 'magic bullets'. In the context of economic austerity, such approaches may not achieve their potential unless funding is available for community organisations to continue to provide services and make and maintain their links with primary care.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.