Why investigate social prescribing?
Despite spending almost 18% of gross domestic product on health care, Americans have a shorter life expectancy and are less healthy than people in other high-income countries.
To control costs and more effectively meet the health needs of populations, there is a global movement to focus on addressing the social determinants of health – the non-medical factors that can account for 30–55% of health outcomes. Many countries have turned to social prescribing as a promising approach.
Social prescribing works by connecting people with non-clinical support and services within their communities. There is a growing evidence base for the health benefits of these activities, which can include arts, culture, social groups, nature-based activities and volunteering opportunities.
Introducing our latest work
Through the EpiArts Lab, our collaboration with the University of Florida Center for Arts in Medicine, we have undertaken a major national evaluation of the emerging social prescribing landscape in the USA. This began in 2022 with convening, networking, and systematic identification of programmes and was followed by surveys and interviews with programme staff between 2023-2024.
We have heard from programmes nationwide — from Alameda, California to Williamstown, Massachusetts — who shared the innovative ways they support health and wellbeing, from music lessons to glassblowing workshops and museum visits.
We are now delighted to be publishing our learning in our new Viewpoint for The Lancet Public Health and accompanying report Arts, culture, and social prescribing in the US: 23 case studies, 2023–2024.
Rachel Marshall, lead author of the publications stated:
“Drawing on 23 examples from across the US, our latest research shines a light on the country’s unique and growing social prescribing movement.
We call upon stakeholders in the US and beyond to recognise the benefits that social prescribing could bring to public health and take action to support its development.”
Learning and opportunities
Through this research, we demonstrate that social prescribing in the USA is already in action and can be effectively delivered within a predominantly privatised health-care system. Programmes studied feature highly varied activities, populations, and models which can offer new possibilities and templates for social prescribing internationally. They also provide valuable lessons about the barriers and enablers to implementing social prescribing, and point to further action needed for it to reach its full potential as a public health tool that offers potential cost savings and health benefits.
The USA already has a wide range of assets across the arts, culture, heritage, community, and nature, but too many of these remain disconnected from people whose health stands to benefit. We invite readers to learn from existing practice and help realise the promise of social prescribing across the USA and beyond.
Find out more in our two new publications:
Prof Daisy Fancourt, UK principal investigator at the EpiArts Lab commented:
“Social prescribing has been gaining substantial ground in countries around the world, especially those with publicly-funded healthcare systems.
This new research highlights the feasibility and exciting opportunities for social prescribing programmes to also be developed in insurance-based healthcare systems.”
About the EpiArts Lab
The EpiArts Lab is a National Endowment for the Arts Research Lab based at the University of Florida. It is co-directed by Dr. Jill Sonke, Director of Research Initiatives in the UF Center for Arts in Medicine and Professor Daisy Fancourt, Head of the Social Biobehavioural Research Group at University College London (UCL).
The Lab builds on research conducted by Professor Fancourt and our team in the UK by exploring the impacts of arts and cultural engagement on population health outcomes in the US. The Lab also investigates the underlying mechanisms by which these outcomes could occur.
Find out more and browse our other publications here.
