A FREE service which is attempting to ease the pressure on GP surgeries across Barnsley by offering alternative advice has exceeded its target by nearly 100 per cent.
My Best Life is a partnership between South Yorkshire Housing Association and Barnsley Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and supports customers with social, emotional and practical needs where a prescription for medication often isn’t the best solution.
Having secured three years’ funding from the CCG, which commissions the town’s health service, My Best Life began in 2017 and has so far helped 1,144 people - almost double its initial target of 600 - as well as reducing GP appointments by 17 per cent.
The service gets referrals from GPs, community nurses, social prescribing champions and pharmacies.
Advisors then connect people with community groups, offer support with money management and welfare issues, and provide access to work and volunteer opportunities, as a way of alleviating symptoms which may not be medical but disproportionately affect a person’s health.
Of the 1,144 referrals, 270 came from the Dodworth, Kingstone, Stairfoot, Worsbrough and Central wards.
Joe Hall, from My Best Life, said: “The overall response to the service has been fantastic and I’m delighted that we have been able to support so many Barnsley residents to connect with their local community to find solutions to their needs and improve their physical, mental and social wellbeing.
“It gives people different options as opposed to going to their GP and enables them to self-manage their own health issues including depression, housing and financial.
“There’s a high need for it in Barnsley as the figures show. Many people who the service helps don’t know where to go other than their GP, so they get help with multiple things when they are referred to us.”
Every GP in Barnsley is now involved with the scheme, which will run until 2020 before another assessment is carried out to assess how much it’s required in the town.
Dr Nick Balac, chairman of Barnsley CCG, said: “My Best Life in Barnsley is one of the best things that has been commissioned by the CCG. Mostly the people we get coming through before they get depression are anxious for different reasons and they are stressed.
“Those stresses are usually social-related things including money; housing; property; deprivation; being isolated; being elderly or not having somebody to talk to on a daily basis. Simple things.
“So we now have a jigsaw of what we can offer to patients. There were some gaps and My Best Life has filled a lot of those.”
