Some doctors say social prescribing could ease burden on healthcare system

Social prescribing is when a doctor suggests non-medical treatments for patients who present with symptoms that suggest loneliness or isolation. The hope is to ease some of the burden on the overstretched healthcare system. The Canadian Institute for Social Prescribing says the practice is particularly helpful for people from communities facing health inequities and need support in accessing anything that impacts the social determinants of health. In Canada, one of the groups most open and ready for social prescribing is seniors. Sudies into the impacts of social prescribing from the U.K. show fewer visits to emergency and fewer visits to doctors.