Keywords: Social prescribing, primary health care, qualitative research

Background:

Social prescribing is a person-centered approach that addresses patients’ non-medical needs, such as social isolation and depression, by connecting them to community-based services. While widely used in many European countries, this model remains relatively unfamiliar in Turkiye. Investigating the perspectives of family medicine residents may guide future implementation in Turkish primary care.

Research questions:

What are family medicine residents’ knowledge and perceptions regarding social prescribing in Turkish primary care?
What are family medicine residents’ attitudes and perceptions on the applicability of social prescribing in Turkiye?

Method:

This is a qualitative phenomenological study conducted through focus group discussions. Eighteen family medicine residents from Sincan Training and Research Hospital were recruited and grouped into three focus sessions. Before the interviews, participants attended a one-hour briefing on the concept and international practices of social prescribing. Data are being collected through semi-structured interviews, which are audio-recorded with consent and transcribed verbatim. Transcripts will be anonymized and analyzed using thematic analysis with NVIVO software. Coding will be conducted independently by two researchers and finalized through consensus meetings. The number of participants may be increased if data saturation is reached.

Results:

Data collection and transcription are ongoing. As this is an in-progress study, no definitive results are available yet. The full qualitative analysis will be completed before the EGPRN meeting.

Conclusions:

The insights from this research are expected to inform future integration strategies of social prescribing into family medicine education and clinical practice in Turkiye.

Points for discussion:

Does your country have a social prescribing program, and if so, what is the structure or systematic approach behind it?

What factors are most critical in implementing social prescribing in Turkiye?

How can training programs effectively integrate social prescribing?