A Community Links Practitioner is a generalist social practitioner based in a GP practice serving a socio-economically deprived community, addressing the problems and issues that the individual brings to the consultation, rather than a worker whose domain is limited to a specified range of conditions or illnesses, or one who is based elsewhere within health, social care or other services.
They offer non clinical support to patients, enabling them to set goals and overcome barriers, in order that they can take greater control of their health and well-being. Using ‘good conversations’ a CLW supports patients to identify problems and issues they are experiencing and to talk about what really matters to them. They support patients to achieve their goals by enabling them to identify and access relevant resources or services in their community. A CLW also maps local services, engaging with and developing productive relationships with these services including keeping informed of the status of existing and new services.
To find out more see the Community Links Practitioner Leaflet.
