College of Medicine Student lead Tim Owen Jones attended a recent day at the award-winning Bromley by Bow medical practice to explore social prescribing.  Here he reflects about social prescribing and how he plans to use it himself.

He also talks to Dr Saul Marmot, who says he applied to work for Bromley by Bow because ‘it was the first job I really wanted’ – seventeen years later he’s still there.  Saul says “People are seen as people, but they are also seen as part of the family, and part of the community.  I work with a huge number of people who are not medical professionals, who see things in a more human way, especially as some of the people I work with are also patients.”  He adds that social determinants are a huge factor in why people get ill, and says that therefore social prescribing has to be more widely available to increase health.