Lambeth Women’s Health Network
The Lambeth Innovators Project was part of the participant cohort of the Social Prescribing Innovators Programme pilot from 2022 to 2023.
The project aim
The aim was to offer patients in Hills, Brock and Dale diversified access to both health and social prescribing support in a local community venue. The bi-monthly sessions offered, health checks and conversations, accessible health education workshops and exercise taster sessions.
Educational workshops have covered a range of subjects including: healthy eating & nutrition, cost of living support, mental health & well-being, managing persistent pain, managing diabetes, support for carers and community involvement opportunities.
The target goals/outcomes
- Address health inequalities by proactively engaging patients to encourage supportive community connections
- Raise patients awareness of how to better manage their health
- Proactively engage patients to encourage supportive community connections.
Project highlights
20
Sessions were held
424
Women attended
“A patient commented that attending the sessions was the best thing she’d done since Covid and now no longer needed her anti-depressants.”
GP from a participating practice
By bridging the gap between Link Workers and community-based support the Project has:
- Reduced waiting times for patients to meet for the first time with a Link Worker at the busiest practices.
- Allowed patients to be signposted more and offered support faster.
- Raised patient awareness about the support and well-being options available to them.
- Built capacity through group working, collaborating with community partners and encouraging peer support which lessens the dependency on link worker support.
- Spearheaded collaboration and co-design with clinical colleagues and community organisations.
- Led to a reduction from 6 to 3 weeks in waiting list times at busiest practice since October 2022 through engaging those on the waiting list via these sessions.
“Really valuable thing you guys have put together here, each woman mentions it in each discussion.”
Clinical Pharmacist who has supported 2 sessions
A patient reflected that the best thing about attending the WHN is that it gets her out of the house, learning new things, meeting people, and that she is now feeling more confident as a result.
A patient with chronic pain is supporting other attendees through sharing her experiences of managing pain and offering time to meet up outside of the sessions.
Next Steps
- Currently undertaking a Quantitative Evaluation after working with Kings Health Partners and Women’s & Children’s Health Institute to complete a Process Evaluation of the initial six-month pilot period.
- Along with patients previously supported by the Social Prescribing team, additional cohorts of patients have been gradually added to the invite list (Carers, those with Chronic Pain, the socially isolated, those experiencing anxiety and depression).
- Rolling out the project to another area within the PCN to engage patients from other practices in November 2023.
- Commitment to sharing learning and development more widely, to support replication of the model across the ICS or across London.
- Additional funding has been secured via a local health partnership and the PCN to continue the project throughout 2024.
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