Non-clinical community interventions: a systematised review of social prescribing schemes - “A systematised review protocol appraised primary research material evaluating social prescribing schemes published 2000–2015….Outcomes included increase in self-esteem and confidence; improvement in mental well-being and positive mood; and reduction in anxiety, depression and negative mood.”

Rx: Community: Social Prescribing in Ontario - After the yearlong pilot across 11 community health centres and serving 1,100 clients  clients reported a 49% reduction in loneliness, and health providers reported a 42% reduction in the number of repeat visits from clients, 9 months later. 

Community as Medicine Program Results: Results of the implementation of the the Community as Medicine program within the YMCA of San Diego County found “a 77% reduction in ER visits, a 43% reduction in depression, a 20% reduction in social isolation, a 19-point reduction in blood pressure, and a 51% increase in physical activity”

Examining the Veterans Health Administration whole health model of care within the context of posttraumatic stress disorder: “In a study of 18 Veterans Affairs Whole Health pilot implementation sites of veterans with PTSD (n = 1,326) and without PTSD (n = 3,243), the results found veterans with PTSD who used Whole Health services experienced small improvements over 6 months in physical (Cohen's d = .12) and mental (Cohen's d = .15) health functioning, and that veterans without PTSD who used Whole Health services experienced small improvements in physical health (Cohen's d = .09)

CISP: Social Prescribing and Older Adults: A summary of studies from social prescribing among older adults in Canada saw a 48% decrease in participants’ sense of loneliness and a 12% improvement in their mental health, an improvement in physical activity, with one study showing 34% decrease in one or more levels of frailty, and potentially 16,900 fewer cases of coronary heart disease, 7,600 fewer cases of dementia over 10 years, and 6,500 fewer cases of stroke over a lifetime.

First 1,000 Days Suncoast Initiative and UniteUs Impact Report: “A new impact evaluation of the Family Navigation partnership between the First 1,000 Days Suncoast initiative and Unite Us has improved access to essential supportive services for families and children in Manatee, Sarasota, and DeSoto counties. Specifically, parents reported an 89% improvement in their knowledge and awareness of concrete support, a 35% increase in perceived access to social support during times of need, a statistically significant 54% reduction in perceived stress levels after 60 days, and an average increase in mentally healthy days by four days per month. Leveraging insights from a 2022 study, it is estimated that the program’s interventions could potentially lower medical costs for participants by $32 per month”

Health Leads: The Collaborative to Advance Social Health Integration (2020): A study of 21 primary care providers using Health Leads found patients reported a 3-point increase in access to essential resources and a 2-point increase in health confidence, which has been associated with improvements in other health outcomes

The impact of social prescribing on health service use and costs…

• “In Tameside and Glossop, an evaluation of 1,751 people referred to social prescribing reported a 42% reduction in GP appointments (doctors’ appointments) for those patients.”

• “In Kent, an evaluation of 5,908 people seen by a social prescribing Link Worker reported that their A&E attendances reduced by up to 23%. Reductions in demand for health services were particularly high for frequent service users.”

• "In Kirklees, social prescribing support for frequent users reduced GP appointments by 50% and A&E attendances by 66%.”

• “In Rotherham, frequent users’ A&E attendances were reduced up to 43%”

A review of the evidence assessing impact of social prescribing on healthcare demand and cost implications — A rigorous comprehensive review of studies on social prescribing demonstrating “an average 28% reduction in demand for GP services following referral” and “an average 24% fall in attendance of Accident and Emergency Room admissions”

Reductions In Hospitalizations Among Children Referred To A Primary Care–Based Medical-Legal Partnership - “…The median predicted hospitalization rate for children the year after referral was 37.9 percent lower if children received the legal intervention than if they did not.”

Community as Medicine Program Results: Results of the implementation of the the Community as Medicine program within the YMCA of San Diego County found “a 77% reduction in ER visits, a 43% reduction in depression, a 20% reduction in social isolation, a 19-point reduction in blood pressure, and a 51% increase in physical activity”

​​Walk with a Doc: Bringing Communities Together Through Movement and Conversation: A 2017 study of Walk with a Doc  participants saw  40% report getting 150 minutes of weekly physical activity (vs. national average of 23 percent), 71% report getting more exercise,  and 90% report feeling more educated about their health

"A Healthier Canada: An Analysis of the Potential Economic and Social Impacts of Social Prescribing"-..."Every dollar invested into social prescribing programs may return $4.43 to society through improved wellbeing and reduced costs incurred on the health system and government."

“Building the economic case for social prescribing- …studies suggest that social prescribing schemes can deliver between £2.14 and £8.56 for every £1 invested

New research has found prescribing nature can improve happiness and reduce anxiety - "For the 249 participants involved in WWT Blue Prescribing and wider activities at Steart, a considerable proportion have experienced positive outcomes. Our evaluation suggests that the most common outcome was reduced anxiety (70% of participants), enjoying life through feeling more empowered is the most valuable outcome (£209,645 as it last over two years)."

The impact of social prescribing on health service use and costs

• In Newcastle, secondary care costs in 2019-20 were “9% lower than a matched-control group where social prescribing was not available.”

• “In Rotherham, a pre and post analysis on frequent users reported a reduction in costs up to 39%”

Impact of a link worker social prescribing intervention on non-elective admitted patient care costs: Engagement with a link worker social prescribing intervention may reduce non-elective healthcare spending, perhaps through enabling better condition management that results in fewer avoidable health crises. Participation in the [social prescribing] intervention resulted in reductions of up to -£77.57 [95% CI: -152.30, -2.84] (for high engagement patients) per patient, per year, in non-elective care costs. Reductions were greater for patients with higher levels of engagement with the intervention. Sub-group analyses showed greater cost reductions for non-White patients, older patients, and patients without additional co-morbidities.”

First 1,000 Days Suncoast Initiative and UniteUs Impact Report: “A new impact evaluation of the Family Navigation partnership between the First 1,000 Days Suncoast initiative and Unite Us has improved access to essential supportive services for families and children in Manatee, Sarasota, and DeSoto counties by 89%. Specifically, parents reported an 89% improvement in their knowledge and awareness of concrete support, a 35% increase in perceived access to social support during times of need, a statistically significant 54% reduction in perceived stress levels after 60 days, and an average increase in mentally healthy days by four days per month. Leveraging insights from a 2022 study, it is estimated that the program’s interventions could potentially lower medical costs for participants by $32 per month”

NATURE-BASED PHYSICAL ACTIVITY PREVENTS SEVERAL DISEASES, INCLUDING DEPRESSION AND TYPE 2 DIABETES -”…estimates physical activity in nature prevents 13,000 cases of non-communicable diseases, including major depressive disorder, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers.”

How Equity-Oriented Health Care Affects Health: Key Mechanisms and Implications for Primary Health Care Practice and Policy - "A  longitudinal study of 395 patients over two years from 4 primary health care clinics in Canada found higher levels of equity-oriented healthcare predicted greater patient comfort, leading to increased confidence to prevent and manage their health problems, which, in turn, improved health outcomes (depressive symptoms, PTSD symptoms, chronic pain, and quality of life)."

(More coming soon)

Helping GPs to help people live the life they want through a more personalised care approach - “A Royal College of General Practitioners survey also found that 59% of GPs believe that social prescribing can help reduce their workload”

(More coming soon)