Social psychiatrist and NCMH Principle Investigator and Centre for Mental Health and Society lead at Bangor University, Professor Rob Poole was interviewed on BBC Radio about the use of socially prescribed activities to improve mental health.
Professor Poole spoke to France Finn from BBC Radio Lincolnshire about the ways that social prescribing can help improve a person’s mental health and wellbeing.
Social prescribing is an approach which uses activities such as gardening and volunteering to address an individual’s needs. It is sometimes referred to as ‘community referral’ which may be made by a GP, nurse or other primary care professional.
The interview followed the recent publication of Professor Poole’s article on the inadequacy of social prescribing in response to the perpetual decrease in funding of social care services.
In the interview, Professor Poole raised concerns about the rising investment and use of social prescribing for physical and mental health conditions. He argued that whilst it can be better than the use of antidepressant medication for some individuals, there is little evidence for its effectiveness and if often unavailable to the most deprived and marginalised populations.
Professor Poole explained, “The large investment in social prescribing schemes occurs against a massive loss of social infrastructure and rising inequality,” – both risk factors for physical and mental illness. He further explained that without sustained funding for social prescribing in the most deprived and marginalised areas, the effectiveness of such schemes will be limited resulting in a ‘lost opportunity’.
Learn more
- Read Professor Poole’s article in the BJPsych bulletin: ‘Social prescribing: an inadequate response to the degradation of social care in mental health’.
- Find out more about the Centre for Mental Health and Society at Bangor University.