Lonely turn to GPS when they just want a chat, says NHS chief

Head of ‘social prescribing’ says breakdown of local communities has affected mental health of millions

TIME was, we used to turn to the village priest – or bartender – when we wanted to pour out our woes. But these days, those seeking solace are more likely to turn to their doctor, the former head of Britain’s GPS has warned.

Prof Helen Stokes-lampard said people were becoming increasingly isolated amid the breakdown of local communities and warned social media was no substitute for true friendships. “You can have 1,000 Facebook friends and be desperately lonely,” she said.

The former head of the Royal College of GPS has been appointed to drive the NHS roll-out of “social prescribing”, under which patients are advised to undertake activities such as dancing, gardening and attending book clubs.

Around a million patients a week visit their GP because of issues such as anxiety, isolation or depression, while the number of prescriptions for antidepressants has doubled in a decade, with almost 71 million issued last year.

In her first interview in the post, Prof Stokes-lampard said: “While our social media world has mushroomed, the people with whom we have meaningful relationships has shrunk. We used to have stronger communities.

“While I’m a GP, people have walked into my consulting room … with problems that were fundamentally social causing an impact on their physical and mental health.”

The National Academy for Social Prescribing aims to involve one million patients a year by 2024 in an attempt to rebuild connections in society. NHS England said thousands of link workers were being recruited.

“A form of social prescribing has always existed. It’s what GPS, priests, hairdressers, bartenders … have always done,” Prof Stokes-lampard said. “Somebody you can open up to.

“We know that people who are not lonely or socially isolated live longer.”

She pointed to Frome, Somerset, where more than 1,400 people have been trained to help people with social prescribing. In the four years since the launch, unplanned hospital admissions fell by 14 per cent, compared with a nationwide rise of 28 per cent.

Dr Michael Dixon, the chairman of the College of Medicine, was one of the first GPS to offer social prescribing.

“There are clear economic benefits of social prescribing, as you see a consistent 20 per cent reduction in GP and hospital visits,” he said.