Social Prescriber

Job description

Job responsibilities

Overall Purpose of the Role

Social Prescribers are a key part of our Primary Care Network multidisciplinary team. They work alongside our integrated team of Health & Wellbeing Coaches, Peer Support Workers, Mental Health Practitioners and Care Coordinators to provide an all-encompassing approach to personalised care and promote and embed the personalised care approach across the PCN.

Description of the Role:

The role will involve coproducing a "Social Prescription" with individuals referred to the service which provides the individual with positive health and wellbeing outcomes through addressing non-medical/social issues in their life, such as housing, debt or social isolation.

Key responsibilities:

To undertake holistic assessments and co-design Health and Well-being Plans with individual service users, identifying support needs to ensure maximum engagement in improving their health and wellbeing.

Develop trusting relationships by giving people time and focus on what matters to them

To provide service users with continuity and a coordinated experience of care, remaining a point of contact throughout the individuals social prescription.

Take a holistic approach, based on the persons priorities, and the wider determinants of health. The role will require social prescribing link workers to manage and prioritise their own caseload, in accordance with the health and wellbeing needs of their population.

To work in partnership with all voluntary and community organisations to build a comprehensive database of local resources to design and support the Social Prescription Menu.

Identify and engage effectively in a non-judgemental and respectful manor with members of the community from all backgrounds, abilities and ages, listening and interpreting complex health information into understandable terms about health and health improvement.

To train and develop GPs and primary care health teams knowledge on how to identify patients suitable for social prescribing service referral on a quarterly basis.

Set up and maintain comprehensive data and evaluation systems, including individual health outcome tools.

Support the development of a service steering group including representation from all stakeholder groups.

Provide quarterly comprehensive outcome focused reports detailing the progress of the service.

To recruit, train and supervise volunteers, matching them to individual service users for specific time-limited support in achieving positive engagement in activities promoting health and well-being.

To keep records of your work and adhere to confidentiality, information sharing protocols and provide monitoring information as required.

Key Result Areas:

Improved health and quality of life

Increased patient satisfaction

Fewer primary care consultations

Reductions in the number of hospital admissions, visits to Accident and Emergency, and outpatient attendances

A decrease in the use of wider hospital resources

Reduction in 999 calls.

Increased awareness of non-health interventions.

General Responsibilities of All Employed Staff:

Confidentiality

• In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately
• In the performance of the duties outlined in this Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential
• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data

Health & Safety

The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the practice Health & Safety Policy to include:

• Using personal security systems within the workplace according to practice guidelines
• Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks
• Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills
• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards
• Reporting potential risks identified

Equality and diversity

The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues to include:

• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures, policies and current legislation
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Personal and professional development

The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by Southampton West PCN Limited as part of this employment, such training to include:

• Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development
• Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work.

Quality

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice and will:

• Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk
• Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision
• Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance
• Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs
• Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Communication

The post-holder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

• Communicate effectively with other team members
• Communicate effectively with patients and carers
• Recognise peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly

Contribution to the implementation of services

The post-holder will:

• Apply practice policies, standards and guidance
• Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work
• Participate in audit where appropriate

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Must be qualified to GCSE or above
• A health, social care, counselling or other relevant professional or academic qualification

Desirable

• Degree level /similar in Health or a care discipline

Experience

Essential

• NHS experience, health care provider or community services

Desirable

• Worked previously in social prescribing
• Previously worked within primary care

Knowledge / Skills / Training

Essential

• Current clean driving licence
• Good communicator
• Skilful in networking
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Passion to help others
• Ability to work across multiple agencies in health and social care
• Work non judgementally with a wide cohort of people
• Demonstrate high levels of emotional intelligence
• Experience in giving Health advice to individuals
• Proven skills in collating information and data on community resources and organising these in up-to-date and accessible formats for a range of different service users from various communities.
• Excellent record keeping skills and the proven ability to write comprehensive reports for a variety of stakeholders.
• Experience of training, supervising, motivating and developing volunteers to ensure a high quality service that meets the needs and promotes positive outcomes for individual service users
• Excellent IT skills and ability to do own administration using database, Powerpoint, SystmOne, EMIS, and other IT packages.
• The ability to work autonomously and to plan, prioritise work under pressure and adapt to new models of working.
• A proven understanding of safeguarding for children and vulnerable adults and ability to implement relevant policies and procedures.
• Excellent holistic assessment as well as consultation skills and experience of providing empowering support to adults in a planned and structured way to improve health, recovery and well-being outcomes.

Desirable

• Knowledge of social care systems

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.

Employer details

Employer name

Southampton West PCN Limited

Address

Victor Street Surgery

Victor Street

Southampton

SO15 5SY