Abstract
BACKGROUND: The automation and effective communication provided by technological facilities allow service providers to deliver social wellbeing activities in a prompt and cost-effective manner. This study explored the perspectives of social prescribers, coordinators, and community providers on the potential of digital technology in social prescribing and the challenges to its implementation. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative study and held three Focus Group Discussion (FGD) sessions with a sample of 18 stakeholders in the Northwest of England, UK including social prescribing coordinators, social prescribers, and voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise (VCFSE) sector providers(1) to qualitatively explore the responses of different participant groups and reveal a wealth of deep insight around the study objective. A purposive sampling strategy was used to select information-rich participants, providing in-depth insights. Transcriptions were analysed through thematic analysis supported by Max QDA to identify common themes and ideas that were generated across the focus groups. RESULTS: Eight themes were identified regarding the potentials and challenges of digital social prescribing from the study participants' viewpoints. The main themes highlighting advantages include capacity and resource management, coordination and integration of support services, access and equity, and outcome evaluation. The challenges identified are digital illiteracy, awareness concerns, financial matters, and a lack of evidence. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings confirm that digital social prescribing offers significant potential to improve accessibility, time efficiency, and personalization in service delivery. However, they also underscore critical challenges, including technical barriers, financial constraints, and a lack of digital literacy among users and providers. Stakeholders emphasized that while digital SP can streamline referrals and enhance data sharing, its success depends on addressing inequalities in access to technology.