South Woodford will host the borough’s first health practitioner networking event in January, which will ultimately benefit the wider community, says organiser Rena Pathak
As both a holistic practitioner and the coordinator of the South Woodford Business Network, I’ve often been struck by how many health professionals we have right here in our local area, including GPs, pharmacists, opticians, community nurses and a growing number of mental health and wellbeing practitioners. Yet, despite working towards the same goal of improving community health, many of us have never actually met.
That realisation inspired me to organise the first health practitioner networking event in Redbridge, which will take place on 7 January at Lily House in South Woodford. The aim is simple: to bring together local health practitioners from all sectors to meet, share insights and build meaningful connections that will ultimately benefit the community we all serve.
In my conversations with GPs, I’ve discovered that, even within the same area, many have never met the pharmacists or opticians they communicate with daily. The same can be said for community nurses and wellbeing practitioners, who often support the same patients but rarely have the opportunity to collaborate directly. This event is about changing that.
Dr Mary Lou Hanley, a community GP at Southdene Surgery and head of the Wanstead, South Woodford and Woodford Primary Care Network (PCN), has been enthusiastic about the idea from the start. She recognises healthcare delivery is evolving rapidly, with GP practices such as Southdene now working within a primary care team model. This means that alongside the GP, patients can now access a social prescriber, practice pharmacist and care coordinators who make up a primary care team designed to manage most primary health needs without every patient needing to see the doctor first. It’s a more holistic, person-centred approach that meets people where they are. But for it to work well, communication between the primary care team and other professionals in the community is essential. Social prescribing, in particular, relies on GPs and practice staff knowing what health and wellbeing services are available locally, so they can confidently signpost patients to the right support.
Rita Kumar, owner of Lily House, has kindly offered the venue for our first gathering. As she put it: “We are delighted this health networking event will be hosted at Lily House. It will create the perfect atmosphere for meaningful connections and collaboration.”
My hope is that this event will mark the beginning of a more connected and collaborative local health network; one that reflects the compassion and talent already thriving in our community, as well as the possibility of this being replicated in other areas of the borough.
For more information on the networking event, email healingnotesfromafriend@gmail.com
