Fraser Health social-prescribing team receives $1.3M boost<\/p>\n
Published 10:30 am Thursday, March 19, 2026<\/p>\n
The concept of \u2018social prescriptions\u2019 \u2013 prescriptions for wellness \u2013 has been gaining traction in recent years, and new funding will see a Fraser Health team help it advance provincewide.<\/p>\n
Dr. Grace Park and Margaret Lin are co-leads of one of two Fraser Health teams chosen for Michael Smith Health Research BC awards supporting research aimed at strengthening care for older adults living at home.<\/p>\n
With the funds \u2013 $1.3 million \u2013 Park and Lin \u201cwill collaborate with B.C. universities, other health authorities and community partners to evaluate the impact of social prescribing on older adults and the health system, and strengthen partnerships between the health system and community partners,\u201d a March 13 news release states.<\/p>\n
Last August, Park \u2013 a White Rock physician and regional medical director for home and community care in Fraser Health \u2013 described the health authority as a pioneer of social prescribing in Canada, \u201cbecause we have been able to implement it in a systemic manner throughout the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
First launched in 2019 in partnership with the United Way, the phenomenon involves providing prescriptions for \u201cwellness\u201d rather than illness, to connect seniors to community resources for exercise, socialization and improved nutrition while they are still independent.<\/p>\n
Family physicians and nurse practitioners identify seniors who could benefit, then the prescribing physician connects them to a seniors\u2019 community connector \u2013 such as Brella Community Services in South Surrey \u2013 to work with them on a wellness prescription. Just like a typical prescription, the dosage and amount is tailored to the individual\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n
Park\u2019s August comments accompanied news of two Michael Smith Health Research BC development grants totalling $125,000 received at that time to \u2013 in partnership with United Way, Simon Fraser University and UBC \u2013 \u201cdevelop a framework for evaluating and expanding social prescribing even further.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf future grant applications are successful, we will be able to support other health authorities to implement social prescribing in their regions as well,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
There are currently 21 community connectors and more than 3,000 people connected in the Fraser Health region alone, the latest release notes, adding that worldwide, more than 30 countries have joined the movement.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn Fraser Health, we\u2019ve been able to build a bridge between the health system and the community,\u201d said Lin, who is also regional project lead.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful thing because every health authority\u2019s program will look a little different to best support their communities, and we will be able to share our learnings to support social prescribing across B.C.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fraser Health\u2019s director of evaluation and research services Kate Keetch said evolution of the initiative \u2013 along with that of the health authority\u2019s Indigenous Caregiver Support Model, which also received new funding \u2013 \u201cis a testament to the passion and dedication of the research teams, and an example of how research truly is care.\u201d<\/p>\n
The grants are among five awarded by Health Research BC, which is investing a total of $6.3 million over three years through its Advancing the Use of Evidence in Seniors\u2019 Home and Community Care Program, to support research teams \u201cto bring proven seniors\u2019 care approaches into everyday care settings and evaluate their impacts,\u201d according to information at healthresearchbc.ca<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThis investment \u2026 creates a unique opportunity to learn not only what works, but why it works and how it can be adapted across diverse care settings,\u201d Dr. Geoff Payne, Health Research BC president and CEO, explains in a post on the website.<\/p>\n \u201cThis will ensure research evidence is implemented to address a critical provincial priority.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Fraser Health social-prescribing team receives $1.3M boost Published 10:30 am Thursday, March 19, 2026 The concept of \u2018social…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":547311,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194299],"tags":[49,48,87674],"class_list":{"0":"post-547310","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-surrey","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-surrey"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547310","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547310"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547310\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/547311"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547310"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547310"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547310"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}