When: Wednesday, May 15 from 12 – 1 pm
Where: Zoom (see link here)
Talk Abstract
Social prescribing is a model of health and social care that aims to link people with unmet social needs to resources within the community. The initial social prescribing initiatives in British Columbia (BC) began in 2020 focused on older adults and programs are located throughout the province. This presentation will describe social prescribing and the evidence related to older adults, as well as present an overview of the social prescribing programs for older adults in BC.
Speaker Bios
Margaret Lin is a registered nurse, a regional project leader at Fraser Health, and a PhD student in nursing at UBC. At Fraser Health, Margaret leads region-wide healthy aging initiatives, including social prescribing integration, the frailty pathway, and the Pacific Regional Centre for Healthy Aging. In each initiative, Margaret collaborates closely with partners in different sectors, from health authority leadership teams and healthcare providers to community care providers and researchers. Her work focuses on promoting partnerships, integration, and strategies that realize one key message: Aging does not equal frailty.
Bobbi Symes, MA, CPG, is the Director, Healthy Aging at United Way British Columbia. Bobbi is a strong advocate for social prescribing and its potential to transform health, community, and improve overall well-being. Bobbi has been active in the implementation and evaluation of social prescribing programs across BC in collaboration with academia, community organizations, healthcare providers, and local and provincial government.
Maureen Ashe is a professor in Family Practice at UBC and a physiotherapist. Maureen’s research program is focused on social prescribing and older adults.