Social prescribing for older people and the role of the cultural sector during the COVID-19 pandemic: What are link workers' views and experiences?
Stephanie Tierney, Caroline Potter, Kathryn Eccles, Oluwafunmi Akinyemi, Jordan Gorenberg, Sebastian Libert, Geoff Wong, Amanda Turk, Kerryn Husk, Helen J. Chatterjee, Emma Webster, Beth McDougall, Harriet Warburton, Lucy Shaw, Kamal Mahtani
A study was conducted to explore the views and experiences of link workers in using the cultural sector within social prescribing, particularly for older people (aged 60+) during the pandemic. An online questionnaire was distributed to and completed by link workers in the UK. It was identified that link workers need to regard the cultural sector as accessible, appropriate, adequate, affordable and available before referring older people to cultural offers as part of social prescribing. Link workers may benefit from becoming more familiar with cultural sector staff and offers, including online resources, so they can then propose them to patients with confidence.