Social prescribing resources.
Non-medical prescriptions that enhance health and wellbeing can include a wide range of activities and supports.
List of Resources
Strengthening Care:
A Toolkit for Caregiver-Focused Social Prescribing
This toolkit equips organizations and professionals in the caregiver sector with the knowledge and strategic communication tools needed to effectively convey the value of social prescribing. It provides a clear overview of social prescribing, tailored key messages for different audiences, and practical guidance on fostering partnerships, strengthening referral pathways, and integrating social prescribing into caregiver support systems.
Social Prescribing in Canada | 2025
Bridging the Gap Between Health and Social Care
This report provides an overview of current social prescribing developments in Canada, examining its implementation, challenges, and successes across diverse geographies through key regional initiatives and case studies.
Fact Sheet:
Social Prescribing: Strengthening Canada’s Health Care Landscape
Learn about how social prescribing can advance health equity, reduce health care costs, and foster more sustainable, person-centred and integrated health care systems in Canada.
Fact Sheet:
Social Prescribing and Children and Youth Mental Health
Focusing on young people, this fact sheet examines how social prescribing fosters connection, supports mental health, and enhances academic outcomes.
Fact Sheet:
Social Prescribing and Mental Health
This fact sheet details how social prescribing can reduce depression, anxiety, and social isolation and promote better mental health overall
Fact Sheet:
Social Prescribing and Caregivers
Explore how social prescribing alleviates caregiver burnout and strengthens support networks, providing caregivers with the resources they need to thrive.
Fact Sheet:
Social Prescribing and Older Adults
This fact sheet highlights how social prescribing supports aging in place, reduces loneliness, and improves quality of life for older adults.
Social and Nature Prescribing: Considerations for Health and Environment
Developed in collaboration with CASCADES, this practical resource is designed to inspire and guide action in advancing social and nature prescribing to improve health, well-being, and environmental outcomes.
Social Prescribing Training Roadmap
The Training Roadmap provides a deep dive into existing resources that can support the social prescribing ecosystem to provide care that is person-centered and empowers the individual to lead and manage their own health and well-being.
Advancing Holistic Community Health
This report presents insights from our collaborative design efforts, research initiatives, and the diverse resources co-produced with our partners between 2022-2024.
Social Prescribing Needs of Older Adults in Canada
Dive into our CISP Baseline Report for key insights on social prescribing needs among older adults in Canada. Our findings highlight diverse barriers to healthcare access and positive perceptions of holistic care. With a focus on equity, we identify systematic inequities and individualized needs, aiming to inform effective social prescribing initiatives.
Evidence and Gap Map by The Campbell Collaboration
This rigorous and comprehensive Evidence and Gap Map by The Campbell Collaboration includes systematic reviews and primary studies to understand the effectiveness of social prescribing interventions to improve health and wellbeing of older adults in all settings.
Current State of Social Prescribing in Canada
Wondering about the state of social prescribing in Canada? This report from Bridgeable will get you up to date and get you thinking about where you fit into the picture!
Social Prescribing Pathway
This pathway of Social Prescribing will answer your questions on what the five stages of an individual’s experience through a social prescribing program or service are, as well as the key stakeholders involved at each stage.
Good Health & Wellbeing- Social Prescribing: Global Social Prescribing Alliance Playbook
This is a must-read from the Global Social Prescribing Alliance that builds on the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn about best practices for Social Prescribing from around the world and much more.
Social Prescribing (OpenWHO)
How about some online social prescribing studies? This online training course from the World Health Organization is designed to help introduce social prescribing and implement it at the community level.
A toolkit on how to implement
social prescribing (WHO)
This toolkit from the World Health Organization will become your go-to resource for implementing social prescribing at the community level. With examples from several different countries, it includes step-by-step plans and sample materials which can be adapted by multiple stakeholders for introducing, and even scaling up, social prescribing activity.
Global developments in social prescribing
Global developments in social prescribing are the focus of this paper from BMJ Global Health. 17 countries are highlighted from the context of the World Health Organization’s ‘Beyond the Building Blocks’ framework for health systems.
Population Health Series: Social Prescribing
Our own Dr. Kate Mulligan talks about the value of social prescribing and improving the health of communities in this article from the Ontario Hospital Association. It’s just one of a series of articles exploring the concept of population health.
Volunteering for Wellbeing Guide: how to link to social prescribing
Are you looking to support people who are volunteering as part of their social prescribing journey? This guide from the National Academy for Social Prescribing is for volunteer-based organizations looking for new approaches to mobilizing volunteers, and ensuring their health and well-being in the community.
Nature on Prescription Handbook
Go green with social prescribing! This handbook from the European Centre for Environment and Human Health reviews nature-based social-prescriptions and interventions to support psychosocial health.
What is the evidence on the role of the arts in improving health and well-being? A scoping review
The Arts can play a major role in improving health and wellbeing, and are the focus in this World Health Organization report. Thousands of studies were reviewed and synthesized to deliver this comprehensive evidence-based report.
Social Prescribing: Systematic Review of the Effectiveness of Psychosocial Community Referral Interventions in Primary Care
How effective is community-based social prescribing? That’s the focus of this review which also highlights the need to understand longer-term impacts of the social prescribing field and interventions.
Social Prescribing: A Resource for Health Professionals
If you are a family physician or clinical provider, this resource will become your essential tool for tips, talking points, and practical steps to make social prescribing an integral part of your practice, no matter what your practice model. The Social Prescribing Resource draws on the most current evidence and guidance available and will be regularly updated to with the most up-to-date information.
Note: Resource available in English Only.
Arts on Prescription: A Field Guide for US Communities
A roadmap for communities to develop programs that formally integrate arts, culture, and nature resources into local health and social care systems.
Note: Resource available in English Only.
CISP is an intersectoral collaboration initiative of the Canadian Red Cross.
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