Social Prescriber
Job summary
We are looking to recruit to the post of social prescribing link worker, to work within our primary care network multi-disciplinary healthcare team, providing 1:1 personalised support to people who are referred to them by team members and local agencies. The social prescriber will work across the practices who are part of the West Enfield Collaborative Primary Care Network: Winchmore Hill Practice, Abernethy House Surgery, The Town Surgery.
Main duties of the job
This post empowers people to take control of their health and wellbeing by giving time to focus on what matters to me. The social prescribing link worker will build trusting relationships with people, create a shared personalised care and support plan and connect them to local, diverse and culturally appropriate community groups, VCSE organisations and services. They will also work with a diverse range of partners to provide support to community groups and VCSE organisations involved in social prescribing.
About us
This role helps people to work on their wider health and wellbeing, specifically addressing health access and outcomes and wider determinants of their health, such as debt, poor housing and physical inactivity, as well as other lifestyle issues and low-level mental health concerns by increasing peoples active involvement with their local communities. This approach particularly helps people with long term conditions (including support for mental health), people who are lonely or isolated, or who have complex social needs which affect their wellbeing.
Job responsibilities
1. Working with direct supervision by a GP, take referrals from a wide range of agencies, including PCNs GP practices and multi-disciplinary team in 2019/20 and from 2020/21: pharmacies, wider multi-disciplinary teams, hospital discharge teams, allied health professionals, fire service, police, job centres, social care services, housing associations, and voluntary, community and social enterprise (VCSE) organisations (list not exhaustive). 2.
Provide personalised support to individuals, their families and carers to take control of their health and wellbeing, live independently and improve their health access and outcomes, as a key member of the PCN multi-disciplinary team. Develop trusting relationships by giving people time and focus on what matters to me. Take a holistic approach, based on the persons priorities and the wider determinants of health.
Offer health checks as directed by the GPs. Co-produce a simple personalised care and support plan to improve health and wellbeing, introducing or reconnecting people to appropriate community groups and statutory services. The role will require managing and prioritising your own caseload, in accordance with the needs, priorities and any urgent support required by individuals on the caseload.
It is vital that you have a strong awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, when what the persons needs are beyond the scope of the link worker role e.g. when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner. 3.
Work with a diverse range of people and communities, to draw on and increase the strengths and capacities of local communities, enabling local VCSE organisations and community groups (including faith groups) to receive social prescribing referrals. 4.
Alongside other members of the PCN multi-disciplinary team, work collaboratively with all local diverse partners to contribute towards supporting the local VCSE organisations and community groups to become sustainable and that community assets are nurtured, through sharing intelligence regarding any gaps or problems identified in local provision with commissioners and local authorities. 5.
Social prescribing link workers will have a role in educating non-clinical and clinical staff within their PCN multi-disciplinary teams on what other services are available within the community and how and when patients can access them. This may include verbal or written advice and guidance.
Person Specification
Qualifications · Essential
General Practice
Desirable
Social Prescribing experience
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab) . From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab) .
