Social prescribing is a healthcare approach in which healthcare professionals refer people with complex health and social issues to meaningful communities in their local neighbourhoods.
A general practice may refer a patient to a link worker, who provides personalised support to help the patient find relevant social activities in their neighbourhood, such as cultural or community-based activities.
Social prescribing is a holistic approach to healthcare, with great potential to reduce social inequality in health. The concept is internationally recognised. The WHO recommends it as part of the future primary healthcare system.
Social prescribing has shown positive results in countries such as England, where it is now an integral part of the British NHS. It is also gaining ground in several other European countries, including Denmark.
Our research explores how this model can best be applied in a Danish context, and how it is best integrated as part of the collaboration between healthcare and civil society.
Social prescribing holds great potential. To achieve lasting and sustainable impact in Denmark, however, it requires a joint and systematic research effort – and this is precisely why, together with researchers from Aalborg University, the University of Southern Denmark, and Hvidovre Hospital, we have established CONNECT, a national network that unites efforts, links practice and research, and creates durable solutions.
CONNECT is Denmark’s national research network for social prescribing. We bring together researchers and practitioners to generate knowledge about what works – for whom, when, and how.
Social prescribing is complex. It involves many actors and works through relationships, motivation, accessibility, and context. To develop a sustainable national model, both qualitative and quantitative research methods are needed – otherwise, we risk ending up with solutions lacking real anchoring or documented effect.
CONNECT links researchers and local initiatives across the country. We collect experiences, analyze them, and feed shared knowledge back into practice. In this way, we ensure that social prescribing develops with both research and impact at its core.
We build on the many initiatives already taking place in municipalities, sports organizations, the housing sector, volunteer centers, and general practice clusters. Here, solutions are created for citizens with needs that the healthcare system alone cannot solve – such as loneliness, low physical activity, and mental vulnerability.
CONNECT does not seek to steer, but to support. We aim to create strong connections between research and practice, enabling policymakers, funders, and practitioners to make decisions based on solid knowledge.
We want to help ensure that social prescribing in Denmark develops sustainably, with documented effect and in close collaboration between research and practice. When the two go hand in hand, both knowledge and impact grow.
