Community Link Worker
Community Link Worker
Provides social prescribing to help people improve their health & wellbeing
A Community Link Worker is a generalist social practitioner based in a GP practice serving a socio-economically deprived community, addressing the problems and issues that the individual brings to the consultation, rather than a worker whose domain is limited to a specified range of conditions or illnesses, or one who is based elsewhere within health, social care or other services.
They offer non clinical support to people, enabling them to set goals and overcome barriers, in order that they can take greater control of their health and well-being. Using ‘good conversations’ a CLW supports people to identify problems and issues they are experiencing and to talk about what really matters to them. They support people to achieve their goals by enabling them to identify and access relevant resources or services in their community. We have a CLW Privacy Policy 2022 to ensure our compliance.
A CLW also maps local services, engaging with and developing productive relationships with these services.
They will keep practice teams informed of the status of existing and new services and identifies any local service gaps.
ELGT has 4 CLWs working with GP practices in the Edinburgh. These are:
- Ferniehill Surgery (Gilmerton)
- Southern Medical Group ( Liberton)
- Mackenzie Medical Centre (Pleasance)
- Braefoot Medical Practice (Inch)
- Bruntsfield
- Dalkeith Road
- St Leonards Medical Practice (Pleasance)
- Ratho Medical Practice
Award Winning Team
The 2024 Social Prescribing Awards hosted by the Social Prescribing Network and the National Academy for Social Prescribing recognised the wealth of innovative social prescribing projects and schemes running throughout the UK and internationally. It awarded the Edinburgh Community Link Worker Network which is part of the Edinburgh Health and Social Care Partnership the Award for the Best Local Social Prescribing Link Worker Team/Service.
Funded by: Edinburgh Health & Social Care Partnership
Outputs:
- Keeping up-to-date with what’s happening both locally and city wide, sharing with the wider team when appropriate
- Highlighting gaps in services
- Providing 4-6 sessions per patient
- Providing feedback, case studies and stats
- Attend CLW Locality Team meeting
- Providing appropriate and timely interventions
Outcomes:
- Encourage people to lead healthier active lives through participating in physical activities for all abilities in their local greenspaces to help improve their self-esteem.
- Enabling participants to link up with local community groups so they can continue to participate sustainably
- Develop relationships with patients/clients and support engagement with services and activities to promote the development of individual resilience and ability to self-manage
- Build a good relationship with lead GP to monitor how the service is going.
- Networking, building and strengthen relations with community organisations, services and groups.