For many Barts Health patients who have recently had heart surgery, returning home can mean issues with going back to work and other financial concerns when it comes to paying for rent, food and other essentials.
To support patients through this journey, we have funded a social prescribing programme, which offers practical advice and emotional support to those who are struggling post-surgery. In the next three years, the service aims to support up to 1,000 patients within the borough of Tower Hamlets.
Remi Apata-Omisore is the Community Connector at the heart of programme, who works alongside teams at Barts Heart Centre and the Bromley-By-Bow Centre to support patients. She has been in the post since November 2023 and is based at St Bartholomew’s Hospital.
What is Social Prescribing?
“Social prescribing connects people to non-medical, holistic support to help address any financial, mental health or lifestyle issues they may be facing. By understanding each person’s individual stressors and needs, I can give each patient tailored support which includes referrals to benefits services, advice on diet and exercise and making connections to local community groups.”
The programme aims to help those who may have certain barriers in finding support, such as caring responsibilities, disabilities, language barriers and financial worries.
By tackling these socioeconomic stressors with community support, social prescribing helps to reduce pressure on the NHS, including reduced GP appointments, hospital admissions and A&E visits.Remi Apata-Omisore
Why is your support so important for patients in East London?
“Research shows that the number of people dying from preventable circulatory diseases, such as heart disease and stroke in parts of East London is higher than the England average.”
“A lot of people in the East London area are make a living doing ‘gig work’ such as Uber drivers or Deliveroo couriers. Patients that I see have often lost their jobs and don’t get sick pay and to go back to work they have to be signed off by the GP. For Uber drivers, they also have to go through the whole DVLA and TFL process to make sure they are fit for work. That usually means they can’t afford to pay their rent, or they’re eating less food or borrowing money from families and friends.”
What support does social prescribing offer?
“I do a mobility and emotional wellbeing assessment, where patients rate their concerns from 0-6. When we know what those main concerns are, I support with referrals to benefits advice, weight loss programmes, community groups and/or food bank vouchers. Some people have no recourse to public funds which is another stressor.”
“For example, there is a lady I worked with recently who had heart failure and had surgery to insert an implant. She was struggling with caring responsibilities, so I referred her to a Carers’ Network in Newham, as well as a weight loss programme. I also helped her fill in a taxi card application to help with transport and put her in touch with a local Benefits Advice group. She now also goes to a knitting group at the local library, which she loves!”
Why social prescribing?
“Making sure patients are in the best position to stay healthy is really important. Social prescribing is a great preventative measure and once you’ve signposted people to support, they then know where to go in the community to get support.”
“It’s great that Barts Charity are funding holistic support and not just focusing on the medical aspects – digging deeper to find out where else people might need support.”