Family doctors to be supported in recruitment drive

NHS England has revealed that an ‘army of advisers’ will be recruited to help patients live fitter, healthier lives and combat anxiety, loneliness and depression.

As part of the organisation’s ongoing social prescribing plans, NHS England plans to recruit 1,000 social prescribing ‘link workers’ who will be able to give people time to talk about what matters to them and support them to find suitable activities that are a better alternative to medication as part of a step change in the provision of ‘personalised care’.

Around half of GP appointments are not directly related to medical conditions, according to experts. The blueprint for Universal Personalised Care, which will also free up GPs to deal with patients who really need them, is due to approved by the NHS England Board at the start of February.

Richard Vautrey, British Medical Association (BMA) GP committee chair said: “Every day, GPs see a large number of patients with a broad range of health conditions. But often, those who come to see their GP will have complex underlying reasons for doing so, not always medical and often linked to social and domestic circumstances which affect their physical and mental wellbeing.

“Good access to professionals who can link patients to local services and activities – such as community support groups and classes – can be of great benefit to patients, actively involving them in their own care and improving their longer-term wellbeing. This should also allow GPs to focus their time and expertise on treating people’s more immediate or acute health needs.

“GPs and their teams are under a huge amount of pressure to deliver high quality care to a rising population with increasingly complex needs, and therefore it is vital, now more than ever, that patients are able to see the right healthcare or support professional for them within a reasonable timeframe. The BMA has long-backed social prescribers supporting the general practice team, and this commitment to roll them out across the country is very welcome.”