PCN Social Prescribing Link Worker inPudsey inPudsey PUBLISHED FRI 25 OCT 2024

This is an exciting opportunity to join a vibrant and mature Primary Care Network within our Community Wellbeing (Social Prescribing) team. We are looking to boost the capacity in our CW team with additional experienced Community Wellbeing Advisers in order to service our patient population in and around Pudsey. The role will be largely remote (working via telephone from Manor House) but there will also be opportunities for community work as well as occasional work within our member practices. There may be the need for some weekend work (just on a Saturday and not every week) but if this is the case you would get the same amount of time back during the week. There will not be a need to work more than 37.5 hours on average each week and we can offer flexible working patterns within reason.

WLPCN is well developed and visionary, benefitting from a significant workforce comprising multiple clinical disciplines. If you thrive on truly holistic patient care with daily opportunities for multi disciplinary team working, then this could well be the role for you. We also encourage CPD, allowing our staff to train and upskill as much as possible where the benefits are mutual

We are looking for an experienced Social Prescribing Link Worker, ideally someone who understand the local provisions in terms of services. The successful recruit/s will also have experience of working with low level mental health and neurodiversity. You will also want to learn about the other teams within our PCN in order to gain a deeper understanding of the other services you can directly refer your patients to in-house without a lengthy referral process and waiting time. This in-house MDT working style benefits our patients enormously and our workforce really find fulfilment in being able to offer such well rounded instant care to their patients

About us

Key responsibilities: the successful applicant/s will

Provide personalised Social Prescribing support to individuals, their families and carers to take control of their wellbeing to live independently, improving health outcomes.

Develop trusting relationships by giving people time and focusing on What Matters to Me. Take a holistic approach, based on the persons priorities and the wider determinants of health.

Co-produce a personalised support plan to improve health and wellbeing, introducing or reconnecting people to community groups and statutory services. The role will require the managing and prioritizing of your own caseload in accordance with the needs, priorities and any urgent support required by individuals. The successful candidate/s will have a strong awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies when it is clear that what the person needs is beyond the scope of non-medical intervention e.g. when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner.

Work closely with the full PCN workforce to deliver a truly holistic health and wellbeing service to our patient population, having a good understanding of the full range of services available in-house

Draw on and increase the strengths and capacities of local communities, enabling local VCSE organisations and community groups to receive social prescribing referrals. Ensure they are supported, have basic safeguarding processes for vulnerable individuals and can provide opportunities for the person to develop friendships, a sense of belonging, and build knowledge, skills and confidence.

Assist patients with referrals for neurodiversity issues such as autism, ADHD etc, understanding the local and national pathways in place facilitating these

Key Tasks

Build relationships with key staff in GP practices within the local Primary Care Network (PCN), attending relevant meetings and becoming part of the wider PCN team, giving information and feedback on social prescribing.

Also build relationships with the wider PCN team and actively participate in multi disciplinary meetings, having gained an understanding of the services of each of the other clinical disciplines within the PCN

Be proactive in developing strong links with all local agencies to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident in the service to make appropriate referrals.

Seek regular feedback about the quality of service and impact of social prescribing on referral agencies.

Be proactive in encouraging self-referrals and connecting with all local communities, particularly those communities that statutory agencies may find hard to reach.

Provide personalised support

Work from a strength-based approach focusing on a persons assets.

Be a friendly source of information about wellbeing and prevention approaches.

Help people identify the wider issues that impact on their health and wellbeing, such as debt, poor housing, being unemployed, loneliness and caring responsibilities.

Work with the person, their families and carers and consider how they can all be supported through social prescribing.

Help people maintain or regain independence through living skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards.

Where appropriate, physically introduce people to community groups, activities and statutory services, ensuring they are comfortable. Follow up to ensure they are happy, able to engage, included and receiving good support.

Where people may be eligible for a personal health budget, help them to explore this option as a way of providing funded, personalised support to be independent, including helping people to gain skills for meaningful employment, where appropriate.

Support community groups and VCSE organisations to receive referrals

Forge strong links with local VCSE organisations, community and neighbourhood level groups, utilising their networks and building on whats already available to create a map or menu of community groups and assets. Use these opportunities to promote micro-commissioning or small grants if available.

Work with commissioners and local partners to identify unmet needs within the community and gaps in community provision.

Work sensitively with people, their families and carers to capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of non-medical interventions on their health and wellbeing.

Support referral agencies to provide appropriate information about the person they are referring. Use the case management system to track the persons progress. Provide appropriate feedback to referral agencies about the people they referred.

Seek opportunities as landscapes change and evolve to embrace new workstreams, targeting cohorts of patients most likely to benefit. This may include group working