BackgroundSocial prescribing is a collaborative approach to improve inter-sectoral working between primary health care and community organisations. The Links Worker Programme (LWP) is a social prescribing initiative in areas of high deprivation in Glasgow, Scotland, that is designed to mitigate the negative impacts of the social determinants of health.AimTo investigate issues relevant to implementing a social prescribing programme to improve inter-sectoral working to achieve public health goals.Design and settingQualitative interview study with community organisation representatives and community links practitioners (CLPs) in LWP areas.MethodAudiorecordings of semi-structured interviews with 30 community organisation representatives and six CLPs were transcribed verbatim and analysed thematically.ResultsParticipants identified some benefits of collaborative working, particularly the CLPs’ ability to act as a case manager for patients, and their position in GP practices, which operated as a bridge between organisations. However, benefits were seen to flow from new relationships between individuals in community organisations and CLPs, rather than more generally with the practice as a whole. Challenges to the LWP were related to capacity and funding for community organisations in the context of austerity. The capacity of CLPs was also an issue given that their role involved time-consuming, intensive case management.ConclusionAlthough the LWP appears to be a fruitful approach to collaborative case management, integration initiatives such as social prescribing cannot be seen as ‘magic bullets’. In the context of economic austerity, such approaches may not achieve their potential unless funding is available for community organisations to continue to provide services and make and maintain their links with primary care.

Ryan‐Harley (8JE1004) in the Wacissa River of North Florida is one of few sites in the Eastern United States that contains an unfluted lanceolate point component (Suwannee) in a buried context. Extinct and extirpated faunal remains found within the Suwannee artifact layer at Ryan‐Harley have been cited as evidence of a Pleistocene faunal refugium in the Southeastern United States. In 2015, geoarchaeological excavations were undertaken to determine if the Ryan‐Harley Suwannee assemblage is culturally discrete and associated with Pleistocene fauna. Geoarchaeological data demonstrate that the archaeological component was exposed until ~8,000 calbp on a relict eolian landscape before burial. No radiocarbon ages were obtained on either extinct or extant faunal material from the site, and the excavated portion of the geologic stratum containing the artifact assemblage is devoid of other datable organics. Therefore, no unequivocal conclusion can be reached about the association of the extinct faunal material with the Suwannee artifacts. However, multiple lines of evidence fail to reject the hypothesis that the Ryan‐Harley lithic assemblage represents a single occupation of Suwannee point makers. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that the Suwannee occupation of Ryan‐Harley most likely occurred during the Younger Dryas (~12,900–11,700 calbp).

Background: A key component of the quality of health care is patient satisfaction, particularly in regard to Primary Care Physician (PCP), which represents the first contact with health care services. Patient satisfaction is associated with ethnic, regional and socio-demographic differences, due to differences in service quality, patient-doctor communication, and the patient's perceptions. The aim of this study was to evaluate patients' satisfaction related to primary care physicians' (PCP) performance and to explore potential differences by ethnicity in a multicultural population. Methods: A national cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted, among a random sample of the Israeli population aged ≥25 years. Satisfaction level from performance of PCP was assessed using a validated questionnaire (30 items; 6 different domains). Results: The final sample included (n = 827 Jews; n = 605 Arabs, mean age 54.7(±14.9). In the adjusted logistic regression models, Arabs reported lower general satisfaction related to PCPs' performance as compared to Jews (adjusted odds ratio (AOR), 0.63; (95% CI: 0.40-0.98). Arabs reported lower satisfaction related to PCPs' performance across the following domains: communication skills (AOR, 0.42; 95% CI, 0.22-0.82); interpersonal manners (AOR, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.24-0.58); and time spent with the patients (AOR, 0.60; 95% CI, 0.43-0.85). Conclusions: Jews and Arabs were very satisfied with PCPs' performance. However, there are ethnic differences in the extent of satisfaction level related to the performance of PCP. Satisfaction from PCPs' performance may be achieved by improving the communication skills of the PCP, encouraging interpersonal interaction between the PCP and the patient, and devoting more time to the patient during the visits.