Ways to Wellness

The west of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is one of the most deprived areas in England. People from disadvantaged backgrounds are more likely to suffer with long-term health conditions, typically with an earlier onset. These people have poorer health outcomes and consume more health service resources.

Ways to Wellness adds to and complements medical support through social prescribing: patients are helped to manage their long-term conditions through one-to-one support and given access to community based activities such as becoming more active, learning to eat and cook more healthily or getting back to work.

Ways to Wellness is funded through an outcomes contract. Repayments to investors are governed by a “payments-by-results” contract with the Newcastle Gateshead Clinical Commissioning Group, calculated on the basis of long-term savings through reduced use of hospital services.

Over the seven-year outcomes contract, more than 11,000 people will benefit. The success of the programme will be measured by an improvement in patient wellbeing, reductions in hospital visits, hospital admissions and the length of hospital stays.